Friday Photo: Collingwood Centre, Pheasey.

Today’s Friday photo is the Collingwood Centre in Pheasey, Great Barr. The Pheasey estate was built by Henry Boot for The First National Housing Trust from 1937. The estate was built on farmland (Pheasey Farm) that was originally in the Scott family and part of the Great Barr estate. The Collingwood centre was planned as the community centre, but the outbreak of war in 1939 put a hault to developments with only part of the estate built. Some buildings were then aquisitioned for the war effort and from 1942-45 American GI’s (10th replacement sub-depot) were housed on the Pheasey. In 1946 the Collingwood centre was taken over as a temporary junior school, before becoming a senior school. It is now a community hub for various community groups and events and also houses a Doctors surgery and library, which is unfortunately due to close soon.