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  • Sandwell Valley

Sandwell Valley

In line with Government guidance on essential, daily exercise outdoors, our trails are open daily. Our car park is open from Tuesday to Sunday, 10am-4pm. Our visitor centre, toilets, hide and refreshments are currently closed. See full facilities information below. We urge you to follow the legislation around non-essential travel and please visit your most local nature reserves and green spaces only. Please observe current guidelines on social distancing, face coverings, group sizes, hygiene and follow all signage on-site. See our Covid-19 updates page for the latest safety information (link below). Thank you for your support and understanding.
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Address
RSPB Sandwell Valley, Tanhouse Ave, Birmingham B43 5AG, UK
Grid ref
SP035928

 

See our reserves Covid-19 updates page for which sites are open and other important details.

 

Plan your visit

Opening times

Reserve: Open daily.

Car park: Open Tuesday-Sunday, 10am-4pm.

Toilets: Closed.

Visitor Centre: Closed. 

Refreshments: Closed.

Hide: Closed.

Entrance charges

Free entrance to RSPB members
Yes
Adults
Free, but donations are very welcome.
Children
Free, but donations are very welcome.
Car park cost

£3 per vehicle in the visitor centre car park – RSPB members park for free.

Facilities

  • Visitor centre is closed
  • Car park
  • Toilets are closed
  • Accessible toilets are closed
  • Baby changing is closed
  • Pushchair friendly
  • Refreshments facilities are closed
  • Picnic area
  • Binocular hire is closed
  • Guided walks is closed
  • Viewing points are closed
  • Nature trails
  • Educational facilities are closed
  • Play area

Accessibility

  • Download full accessibility statement (PDF)

How to get here

By train

Hamstead is the nearest railway station. Turn right onto the main road - the Hamstead Hill/Old Walsall Road. Turn left into Hamstead Road then take the fourth left into Tanhouse Avenue just after Hamstead Primary School following the brown sign.

 

By bus

From Birmingham Priory Queensway: Take the number 16 bus to Hamstead, alight at Tanhouse Avenue. From West Bromwich Bus Station: Take the number 5 or 46 bus and alight at Bowstoke Road. Walk along Bowstoke Road to Tanhouse Avenue (20 minutes walk). From Sutton Coldfield Lower Parade: Take the number 5 bus and alight at Bowstoke Road. Walk along Bowstoke Road to Tanhouse Avenue (20 minutes walk).

By bike

National Route 5.

By road

The reserve is brown signposted off the A4041 (Newton Rd) North of Hampstead, take Hamstead Road (B4167), which is fifth on the left near the bottom of the hill by the church (look for the brown sign marked RSPB nature centre).

Sat nav POI file: If you have a satellite navigation system that can accept POI files, please see our POI page for a download link and instructions.

Get directions from Google Maps
RSPB reserves on Google Earth

Schools booking information

Discover a knot of newts, a knab of toads or a cloud of grasshoppers. Give your class a unique learning experience and tick some of those important curriculum targets. Our carefully designed programmes will help primary school pupils develop a range of skills and learn how to identify minibeasts, habitats and so much more.

Every child has the opportunity to discover the miniature world of nature for themselves; from ponds, minibeast meadows, woodland, the river Tame and a bird hide on stilts. Sandwell is a wonderful setting for a memorable day learning about the wealth of nature on your doorstep.

The range of habitats at RSPB Sandwell Valley are all in easy reach of the visitor centre, which means we can provide investigative field work and experience-led programmes to suit your group's needs.

Bring your class here and discover more about garden, woodland and wetland habitats. Led by trained and experienced teaching and volunteer staff, our school sessions and activities are fun and engaging. Pupils work together and develop an understanding of nature through practical activities.

Each programme is designed to last two hours. Sessions run from 10am–12pm and then 12.30pm–2.30pm. Two programmes can be combined to make a whole-day visit. Find out more on our Sandwell Valley school trips page. 

What will the weather be like?

14 degrees, Sunny day

Downloads

Map to help you find your way around our RSPB Sandwell Valley reserve. PDF, 336Kb.

Sandwell Valley reserve map

Contact Sandwell Valley

  • RSPB Sandwell Valley, Tanhouse Ave, Birmingham B43 5AG, UK
  • sandwellvalley@rspb.org.uk
  • 0121 357 7395
  • @RSPBSandwell
  • Find us on facebook

Save nature with a staycation in the UK

Family arriving at a Travel Chapter cottage

Saving the nature that you love for future generations to enjoy. Make the most of your visit by staying in one of thousands of handpicked cottages across the UK. Simply book your stay here to support our partnership. Throughout 2020 holidaycottages.co.uk are supporting our conservation work – saving species and restoring habitats right across the UK at a time when the future of our planet has never been more important and protecting nature for future generations.

BOOK NOW

What will you see?

Our star species

    Goosander male

    Goosander

    These 'saw-billed' ducks are winter visitors to Sandwell Valley.

    Standing Lapwing illustration

    Lapwing

    Look out for the tiny chicks in late spring and early summer.

    Little ringed plover adult, summer plumage

    Little ringed plover

    Sandwell provides the perfect place to rest and refuel in spring and autumn.

    Snipe illustration

    Snipe

    These cryptically-coloured waders can be seen here in winter.

    Male whitethroat

    Whitethroat

    Whitethroats arrive at Sandwell Valley in late April and can be seen in the scrubby areas until early autumn.

Recent sightings

Sandwell Valley RSPB reserve, panorama from visitor centre

Find out about recent wildlife sightings at Sandwell Valley.

read more

Seasonal highlights

  • Spring
  • Summer
  • Autumn
  • Winter

Warblers arrive back home. Swallows and sand martins return in April, followed by house martins. Reed buntings and dunnocks start singing, adding their voices to the chorus. Lapwing chicks, goslings and ducklings are a delight to see. Early butterflies and bumblebees visit the spring flowers. The pond life wakes up ready to be explored.

Chiffchaffs sing their two note song from treetops, complementing nine species of warbler setting up homes. Swifts zoom past, hunting insects over the lake. Newts bask in the warm ponds while dragonflies dart around overhead. Beautiful flowers bloom in the meadow and the bee bank buzzes with solitary burrowing bees.

Wading birds stop off on their journeys for a rest. Water rails can be glimpsed when they break cover between the reeds. The leaves turn into vivid reds, oranges and yellows and bullfinches visit the feeding station near the visitor centre. Ring necked parakeets feed on the apple trees in the wildlife garden.

Winter ducks including wigeons, teals, pochards, shovelers and goosanders gather on Forge Mill Lake. Fieldfares and redwings feast on berries in the scrub. 100 snipe and jack snipe gather. The feeding station is a swirl of activity with willow tits, bullfinches and more.

About Sandwell Valley

Habitat

This enchanting urban green space, once used by the nearby colliery, now flourishes with wildlife. RSPB Sandwell Valley is a fascinating mosaic of different habitats providing homes to a variety of wildlife. Wildflower meadows bloom with colour and buzz with insect life. Escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life and bathe in the woodland's relaxing atmosphere. The scrub is ideal for nesting birds and fills with winter thrushes feasting on the winter berries. Our wildlife garden might spark some ideas for giving nature a home in your own garden and the ponds are full of life to explore.

Conservation

The nature reserve is a place for wintering water birds to find food and shelter, breeding birds to nest and migrating birds to stop and feed on their long journeys. It’s a home for frogs, toads and newts and special types of bees. The reserve provides a valuable urban green space for people in the local community too.

We manage the lake for special birds in the winter, like goosanders, shovelers and wigeons, and breeding birds such as lapwings and little ringed plovers. We clear vegetation on the islands and have rafts for nesting and roosting water birds.

We have growing reedbeds for birds like water rails and reed buntings. Every year we rake out fallen vegetation and cut back small trees. We're also coppicing and pollarding mature willows in the surrounding wet woodland to provide nesting habitat for Britain’s fastest declining resident bird species - willow tits.

We are managing wet grassland areas for breeding lapwings, as well as wintering waders and water birds. We mow the grass in autumn, and remove willow saplings. Meadows are mowed to keep them open for hunting kestrels, feeding finches and flourishing wildflowers and insects in summer.

Partners

Our thanks goes to all charitable trusts, companies and RSPB local groups who have generously given us their valuable time, effort and support.

  • Heritage Lottery Fund
  • Ibstock Cory Environmental Trust
  • Nature Improvement Areas project has been supported by Defra, DCLG, Environment Agency, Forestry Commission and Natural England, Birmingham & Black Country Nature Improvement Area
Heritage Lottery Fund
Ibstock Cory Environmental Trust
Birmingham & Black Country Nature Improvement Area

Site information

Wild times for all! RSPB Sandwell Valley is a fantastic place to get close to nature. It’s perfect for families to have fun together outdoors. Start your adventure at the visitor centre to find out about the latest activities and events, plot your route and get an idea of what wildlife to look out for at this beautiful countryside oasis.

Discover and play: There’s a lot of nature to explore at RSPB Sandwell Valley. Visitors with little ones can enjoy walks along our buggy-friendly paths, wildlife challenges, activities and natural play features. Wildlife watchers can enjoy exploring the mosaic of habitats, spotting the wildlife that lives here.

Wonderful wildlife: RSPB Sandwell Valley is home to a variety of wildlife. Visit the Lakeside Lookout hide to spot wetland birds with the help of our friendly guides, hire a kit to go bug hunting or pond dipping (seasonal) or just stroll around taking in seasonal highlights such as dragonflies, fungi, wildflowers and more.

Relax and enjoy: Take in the wonderful view from our dog-friendly visitor centre while enjoying a hot drink and a snack. The indoor family activities available are especially great for a rainy day.

Latest blog posts

read our blog

Latest forum posts

  • Covid 19 Update November 2020

    We know that for many of you, Sandwell Valley reserve provides enjoyment and solace in the natural world throughout these challenging times. In line with Government guidance on essential, daily exercise outdoors, during #SecondLockdown, our bottom ca...

    Posted 05/11/2020 by Alex S
  • October sightings

    Even with a lot of work going on at the lake this month we have had some great sightings, including: 6 Little egrets, Ring Necked parakeets, Mediterranean gull, snipe, kingfishers, Water rail, raven, dunlin, Mandarin ducks, 3 Little grebes, greylag g...

    Posted 19/10/2019 by Alex S
  • Mostly Herons (#2)

    I've not been to the Sandwell Valley Reserve for what seems like an absolute age. It was great to see the Herons again (as being quite large, they are easy to photograph ;-)). Always nice to see the Robins and especially nice to see a Wren close up a...

    Posted 18/02/2019 by Trugga
  • Mostly Herons

    I can't believe it's been a little over a year since I last went for a stroll around Priory Woods. Always great to see the Herons (being quite large, they're easy to photograpgh ;-)). Always nice to see the Robins but especially nice to see a Wren cl...

    Posted 17/02/2019 by Trugga
read our blog

Activities and events

Activities for children and families

There are plenty of activities for families to do. Hire a kit to go pond dipping, bird spotting or bug hunting. Explore the natural play trail with den building, balance beams, secret paths and a mud kitchen.

The Baby Birds parent and toddler group for pre-school children and their carers takes place every Wednesday. The Sandwell Swans, our 8-12-year-old Wildlife Explorers, meet once a month. Check out our events page for lots of family events including Explorer Thursdays during school holidays.

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