Earlier this week, the freehold transfer of the site was completed, at nil value, subject to a restrictive covenant for the Town Council to maintain the land as public open space.
The site was included in a list of assets the Town Council requested to be transferred from Birmingham City Council (BCC) to the Town Council in the Heads of Terms for a Local Devolution Deal with BCC in 2019. It was approved by BCC for transfer in March 2021 at a peppercorn value, which reflects the maintenance and future investment required.
Following lengthy and complex due diligence, including the granting of easements between BCC, the Church of England, and the Town Council, the site, which includes an undercroft accessed via the closed churchyard at Holy Trinity Parish Church, the Vesey Memorial Gardens are now back in the ownership of the Royal Town, which is of great significance given the 500 year celebrations of the Royal Charter in 2028 and the upcoming quincentenary of Bishop Vesey Grammar School in 2027.
Up until 1939 the Vesey Memorial Gardens were the site of residential dwellings and two public houses, which had fallen into disrepair. In 1939, the former Borough Council decided that following the successful town pageant in 1928, to celebrate four hundred years of the Royal Charter and a play about the life of Bishop Vesey performed at the Jubilee of 1935, that a lasting memorial was needed to Bishop Vesey. The site was cleared and the new Memorial Gardens designed in the Arts and Crafts style by the architect Charles Bateman.
The Town Council has funded the ornate planting at the Gardens for a number of years and provides the poppy sculptures at the Gardens for Remembrance Sunday.
The Town Council has identified funds for improvements at the Vesey Gardens. Improvements at the Gardens are also included in the priorities for investment in the Pride in Place funding programme.
Plans are now being drawn up by the Town Council to restore the historic gardens ahead of the quincentenary celebrations.
Councillor Simon Ward, leader of the Town Council, said:
“I am delighted that the Town Council has finally completed the transfer of Vesey Gardens – one of the most iconic and historic landmarks in our Royal Town. Now we get to work with plans to return the site to its former glories. This is another example of the Town Council working to improve what is unique about Royal Sutton Coldfield as we look towards our 500th anniversary in 2028.”
