Urgent. Action needed by 28 August

Help us save the Warehouse

We’re afraid we have some very troubling news and we need your help. Under the Midlands Rail Hub Alliance (MRHA) Bordesley Chords consultation plans, the Warehouse is currently proposed for demolition around 2030.

We’re urging everyone who knows and cares about our building, its community, its garden, the city’s environmental and social movement, heritage or Digbeth, to respond to the consultation. The consultation is open 6 July to 28 August 2026.

Birmingham Friends of the Earth’s building The Warehouse incorporates the home of BRIG (Birmingham Race Impact Group) Cafe, Voce Books, Sprocket Cycles, Vivid Projects, BrumRadio, intensively used community meeting space, office space and Digbeth Community Garden.

Respond to the consultation
How to respond

The situation

What the plans show, and our engagement with MRHA

The proposals are at an early stage and the developers still have options to vary the scheme. We need to take this opportunity to show them they should.

MRHA propose to extend the viaduct that crosses Allison Street by 15 metres north widthways, which takes it to midway through the cottage. They plan to demolish the rest of the building and garden to make room for a “worksite” for construction plant, access and materials.

We support the aims and objectives of the wider rail improvements, but the more we look, the more we conclude this particular design has severe impacts not just on our building but on the entire economy and built heritage of Digbeth. We want MRHA to explore other options that would reduce land acquisition and construction that is both costly and environmentally damaging. This would not only save our building but much of the economy, nature space and built heritage of Digbeth, and be much better value for money for the public purse. You can see the current plans here (PDF).

We have met with MRHA and made them aware of the five decades of volunteering and financial investment that have created the intrinsic value of our building for the city, and our keenness to work with them on solutions, just so long as our future is secure.

MRHA have assured us that they are at an early stage and willing to explore other options. You can help firm up that willingness by responding constructively to the consultation.

Why it matters

This building is not just BFOE’s ‘property’. It’s the result of five decades and millions of volunteer-hours of activism and commitment from BFOE, other residents and guests, steadily building its social outcomes, condition and business success. It’s the city’s heart of activism, an irreplaceable city-centre meeting space for hundreds of community organisations every year, and a building in which we have in the last year invested over £100K in new roofs and energy efficiency measures. It has expanded into a beautiful wildlife garden, a rare Digbeth green space. And much more. No financial compensation can make up for this loss.

So we need them to reconsider their land requirements and work with us.

Take action

How to respond to the consultation

Our suggestions are as follows (or more detail here). We shouldn’t need to say this, but please keep your responses polite and constructive.

1. Support the rail improvements in principle

You may have your own views on the detail, or you can simply express support for these long-campaigned-for rail improvements.

2. Tell them how you feel about losing the Warehouse and garden

Ask them to put every effort into alternatives. You could include:

how you use the building and what it means to you
options to explore to avoid losing the Warehouse and garden

3. If you wish, make other points

You could point out that the various enterprises under the arches along the entire length of the viaduct, which may only have weak protection with short leases, are a hugely valuable piece of Birmingham’s independent business scene, and their collective value should be recognised in how they are treated.

The consultation runs from 6 July to 28 August 2026.

Check this video by Peter Plisner (Transport Matters WM) about the impacts of the scheme

Want more help in responding? Read this.

Add your voice

Every response counts. The more people who respond constructively, the stronger the case for MRHA to find another way.

Respond to the consultation

Thank you SO much to everyone who responds, and to all those who have already got in touch. Your support means a lot.

A bit more information

You can read all the consultation materials on the MRHA site.

In summary: the proposals in full are intended to add extra capacity to the rail network serving and passing through Birmingham, reducing the capacity constraints at New Street by developing more rail infrastructure at and through Moor Street.

Timescale would be construction 2030 to 2034 at the earliest. There will also have to be a Transport and Works Act Order, which could involve a public inquiry. Any Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) would not be until 2029 to 2030 at the earliest.

There are also in-person consultation sessions detailed on the MRHA site.

Press and background briefing. Journalists and anyone wanting the full background can download our briefing: Word version | PDF version. This briefing may be updated as the situation develops.

New to the Warehouse? The Warehouse is the home of Birmingham’s environmental and social movement. Find out more about the building and everything that happens there. Visit the Warehouse website (opens in a new tab).

Save the Warehouse