Save Our Scene Campaign

SAVE DIGBETH - EMAIL THE MAYOR

Don’t let them demolish Digbeth. Email the Mayor, Richard Parker now!

Fill in your details below and we'll send an email to the Richard Parker, theMayor of West Midlands on your behalf. Tick "Yes" to stay updated on the campaign, it's future developments and updates from SOS.

Under Midlands Railway Hub's Bordesley Chords proposals, some of Birmingham's best-known music and nightlife spaces, including Club Colette, XOYO, The Night Owl, Mama Roux's, Luna Springs, Suki10c, The Drop Inn, amongst other key venues and businesses face demolition and displacement.

These aren't just "affected premises". They're businesses that have taken years to build. They employ bar staff, sound engineers, promoters and security. They're where new artists play their first shows, where subcultures come together and where a huge amount of Birmingham's creative identity actually lives.

The first consultation closed on 28th August with over 3,500 responses. The next one isn't until summer 2027, with a Transport and Works Act Order submission and public inquiry to follow in 2028. Pressure must be applied now and the local Mayor, Richard Parker is someone who can apply it.

Recipients

Mayor of West Midlands, Richard Parker

Subject

Objection to the demolition of Digbeth's music venues & independent businesses

Message

Dear Mayor Parker,

I'm writing to you about the Midlands Rail Hub proposals affecting Digbeth, and specifically about the future of the grassroots music venues and independent businesses in their path. As Mayor of the West Midlands and Chair of the West Midlands Combined Authority, you lead the region's strategic transport agenda and have a strong voice in how major infrastructure schemes like this one are shaped and delivered. You also carry responsibility for the region's economic growth and cultural life. There is deep unease over these plans from Digbeth's employers, employees, artists and the public who rely on this vital cultural infrastructure, and I believe you are uniquely placed to make sure their concerns are heard.

I understand the case for improved rail capacity into Birmingham Moor Street and I'm not writing to ask you to block the railway scheme. It's certainly needed in some form. I'm writing because, as things stand, some of the city's best known music and nightlife venues, such as XOYO, The Night Owl, Club Colette, Mama Roux's, Luna Springs, Suki10c, Sector 57, The Warehouse and The Drop Inn, amongst other independent businesses, are facing demolition or displacement, and I've seen no clear plan for what happens to them.

These aren't abstract "affected premises." They're businesses that have taken years, in some cases over a decade, to build. They employ bar staff, sound engineers, promoters and security. They're where new artists play their first shows, where subcultures that don't have anywhere else in the city find a home, and where a huge amount of Birmingham's and the wider region's creative and cultural identity actually lives. Losing them wouldn't just be a construction inconvenience; for many, it would mean permanent closure of the only spaces they have to come together as a community.

Firstly, I would like your assurance that you will press MRHA and Network Rail to go back to the drawing board and re-examine all possible other ways of delivering the outcomes (such as those put forward by some consultation respondents). MRHA states that this is an early stage consultation, so there should still be time for the scheme to change significantly. It's clear MRHA were totally unaware of most of these venues and of the cultural and economic value of the area, so they have not assessed the alternatives with full consideration of the facts, including, significantly, the likely cost to the state of land acquisition and a highly contested Public Inquiry. In line with good practice, alternative options should be revisited.

Secondly, whatever the eventual design of the scheme, I would like to know:

- What transition and relocation support is currently planned for businesses that will be displaced or demolished as part of these works, and what role will the Combined Authority play in providing or coordinating it?

- Is there market value compensation to support businesses through disruption or closure?

- The initial consultation period has now closed, with feedback set to shape "refined proposals" ahead of a second consultation in summer 2027, a Transport and Works Act Order submission in early 2028, and a public inquiry the same year. Will you use your position to ensure that Digbeth's affected businesses have a guaranteed seat at the table throughout that process, and would you support, or convene, a facilitated discussion specifically for night-time economy businesses, given their particular and urgent circumstances?

- What timeline can affected businesses expect for clarity on their situation, given many are already reporting significant stress and uncertainty?

The West Midlands has invested heavily in recent years in Birmingham's reputation as a genuine home for grassroots music and independent culture. It would be a huge loss economically and culturally if a rail infrastructure project ended up quietly dismantling the very scene that investment was meant to support.

I'd be grateful for a clear, direct response on how the whole scheme can be rethought and on what's being put in place to protect these businesses collectively and individually.

Yours sincerely,