Bickley Avenue, Royal-sutton-coldfield

In 1676 William Bickley became miller at Hill Hook, founding a dynasty that lasted 157 years. The most tangible remnant is the Bickley Stone, built since 1797 into the wall of Hill Hook House on Clarence Road.

In March 2024 a BMW 3 Series was stolen from Bickley Avenue after its owner advertised it on Facebook Marketplace and a prospective buyer failed to appear. A separate vehicle crime on or near the avenue in March 2026 was closed with no suspect identified.

A feasibility-stage active-travel strategy proposes tightening the junction radii where Bickley Avenue meets Clarence Road and Hill Hook Road, adding dropped kerbs and tactile paving to improve pedestrian crossing accessibility.

The Bourne Brook feeds the nearby Mill Pool, a 1.2-hectare impoundment created because the stream was too weak near its source to power a mill unaided. The original outflow culvert still survives beneath the reserve, running parallel to the dam face but choked with debris.

The mill pool was a Victorian and Edwardian leisure spot: boating, skating, and William Taylor's swings and roundabouts overlooking the water. In July 1911 an outing from Scribbans Bakers of Hockley turned dramatic when a boat sank and Dick Smith had to be pulled out by Joseph Smith.