The battle for The Close
A cluster of historic buildings in Selly Oak are at the centre of a row between the University of Birmingham and local residents — and no one is backing down
Kate Knowles
Kate is a reporter from Birmingham who set up The Dispatch in 2023. She has written extensively about politics in the West Midlands and has investigated the region’s housing and hospitality sectors.
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Birmingham
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An editor's edition from Kate
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'Oh my God, it's actually happening. We're doing this'
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Ancestral land owners, gangster pop stars and everything in between
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Shabina Bano claims she was the victim of bullying, harassment and misogyny by her former Birmingham Labour colleagues
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The clock is ticking on the Methodist Central Hall
A shock letter & a silent councillor: what really happened at Baby Aid Birmingham
And what it says about our city leaders
Want to get your child into a King Edward grammar school? The fight is fierce
'All they were interested in was their child passing the test, they didn’t care how it was done, they just wanted to pay for it'
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‘You just think of Grenfell. The first thing you think is you’re not going to get out of here alive’