Dear readers — finally, some respite from the heat in cloud-covered Birmingham. Dispatch HQ is pleasantly cool again, giving us approximately 45 minutes until we start complaining about the lack of sun.
Today, we’re bringing you an update about one of our biggest stories from last year. You might recall Raddlebarn Primary School, the little red brick school in Selly Oak that is drowning under £400,000 of debt. Our story unearthed concerning details about the financial habits of its headteacher, Angela Lowry, who failed to reproduce receipts for a Birmingham city council financial probe and was found to have made unusual purchases on her school card — like spending on her therapy cockapoo, Hazel. Meanwhile, she accused governors who tried to raise the alarm of bullying — and Birmingham city council backed her.
Lowry disputed our story’s claims, but has been on an extended period of sick leave since October. After months of uncertainty, we can now reveal she’s left her role.
Yet parents and concerned members of the community are still desperate for the council to explain why the school is so drastically broke. Read on for the full details. If you have information that may be useful, please get in touch at editor@birminghamdispatch.co.uk
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Also in the news: major improvements to the city’s railway services could also mean a community building in Digbeth gets whammed with a bulldozer. The Warehouse has been going for more than five decades — and its inhabitants are calling on supporters to help save it. Meanwhile, another big building appears to be responsible for causing damage: sun reflecting from the elaborately mirrored surface of Grand Central Station has caused nearby Lime bikes and scooters to smoke perilously.
Finally, The Dispatch is searching high and low for our next team member. Kate and Olivia need a mate, one who is excellent at writing and loves bothering people by calling them up and getting them to spill their gossip. If that’s you, or someone you know, send them the link below — and don’t delay! The deadline to apply is Saturday 31 July.
Catch up and coming up:
- We went back to school at the weekend for a belting slice of Brum history from Jon Neale. Did you know our city changed the face of education in Victorian Britain? “What an outstanding and important article,” commented Charles Barwell who happens to be descended from one of the families which brought about the Civic Gospel that led to these very educational reforms.
Jon Neale
- Last week, our sparkling new staff writer Olivia asked the question on everyone’s parched and shrivelled lips: where have all our lidos gone? Her article prompted a lot of reminiscing in the comments about glorious Art Deco outdoor baths from times gone by. But if this heat keeps up, we’ll settle for a paddling pool in Pigeon Park.
Photo of the week
A narrowboat mooring along the water in the lively Brindley Place captured by Alex Tzotzis
A Raddlebarn-storming saga
Angela Lowry, the headteacher of cash-strapped Raddlebarn Primary school in Selly Oak, has left her role seven months after an explosive investigation by The Dispatch revealed she had mismanaged school funds. Although Lowry initially disputed our story — which published details from a Birmingham city council audit report that singled her out — in an email to all parents, several filed complaints to the local authority about the details we unearthed.
Rhi Storer
Parents were informed of Lowry’s departure just after Easter but she has left many unanswered questions in her wake. Raddlebarn parent Gary Thomas (whose daughter has since moved on to secondary education), even initiated tribunal proceedings to try to get Birmingham city council to release the full unredacted report. In the process, he discovered some “astonishing” details. First up, since the council intervened by appointing an ‘Interim Executive Board’ (IEB), the school’s money troubles have got worse not better. Department for Education figures show:
- Raddlebarn’s revenue position deteriorated from -£129,000 in 2023–24 to -£405,000 in 2024-25.
- Spending on “professional services” — non-teaching costs — rose ten fold from £22,000 in 2023–24 to £276,000 in 2024–25.
Secondly, Thomas is unconvinced that the local authority has properly implemented the report’s recommendations. After scouring the minutes of the IEB’s June 2024-March 2025 meetings, Thomas says he found just one brief reference to the document. He’s seriously concerned.
“I’ve still had no satisfactory explanation from BCC about why the school’s deficit increased to almost £0.5m or why spending on ‘professional services’ rose to £276K when the national average is £36K,” Thomas tells The Dispatch. “These figures are extraordinary. I’ve asked for an independent forensic investigation of the school’s finances but BCC say they have no plans for this.”
When we put questions to Birmingham city council, their spokesperson said it “does not accept” that proper governance wasn’t followed. They add: “The financial challenges faced by schools are complex and are influenced by a range of factors, including declining pupil numbers, rising costs and historic financial pressures. The purpose of the IEB was to support the school in addressing these challenges and improving its long-term sustainability.” Raddlebarn Primary School was approached for comment.
Is this the end of the line for the Warehouse?
Just a few short weeks after we reported on the woes of Digbeth businesses affected by tramworks in the area, another public transport beef has exploded right on their doorstep. the Warehouse on Allison Street, home to environmental organisation Birmingham Friends of the Earth (FoE), Voce bookshop and several other offices, is at risk of closure under proposals to improve the city’s railway services. Midlands Rail Hub Alliance (MRHA) last week launched a consultation on the plans that could see 300 additional trains coming in and out of the city every day. Under previous plans, the Warehouse appeared mostly unaffected by the works. Now, the MRHA wants to extend tracks from Moor Street and along Allison Street, and to demolish the Warehouse and community garden to make way for a worksite during construction.
Friends of the Earth and their neighbours are now urging supporters to respond to the consultation, which ends on 28 August, in favour of saving the building. Birmingham FoE CEO Karen Leach tells The Dispatch the organisation supports public transport improvements in general, and have recently met with the MRHA to discuss the plans. But, after more than 50 years at the location, their priority is to make sure MRHA is aware of the strength of feeling for the building — and to save it. The MRHA was approached for comment.
A glare-ing issue
Firefighters were called to Grand Central Station on Friday after Lime bikes and scooters appeared to be spontaneously combusting in slow motion just outside the train station. It transpired that the glare from the extravagantly mirrored surface of the unusual building — which looks a bit like an unfurled piece of once-scrunched-up tin foil — had reflected onto the electric machines causing them to smoke. After moving them into the shade, firefighters monitored their temperature which began to drop, reducing the risk. A spokesperson for Lime said the smoke was "not due to an issue with our hardware" but with the city experiencing regular high temperatures recently, the incident has raised questions about how practical the building’s design is. Passer-by Aamina Omar, who was in the area on Thursday, described walking under the hotspot as "being hit with some sort of tornado". (BBC).
Quick Hits
✔️ Birmingham Newman University has topped a student survey across all categories combined (The Times, £)
🚨 A man working on construction at Birmingham Children’s Hospital sadly fell to his death on Friday morning. West Midlands Police told The Dispatch they are liaising with the Health and Safety Executive about the incident.
⚽ A mural of the Black Country-born England players Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers tucking into orange chips has appeared on the side of the Classic Fryer chippy in Quinton (BBC)
👑 Prince Harry — in town for the Invictus Games which he founded in 2014 — has been papped playing pickleball for the crowd. There has been no sight of Mehgan or the kids, however, although the rumourmill is in overdrive as to whether or not they will put in an appearance. (Sky)
Media picks
🎧 Did a secret experiment during the Second World War create a half-man, half-pig hybrid that lurked in the shadows of the Cannock Chase? Sarah Julian delves into the story of the legend of the Pigman that captured the people's imagination, and asks, is there any truth to the myth? Listen here. Read our story about the unique weirdness of West Midlands folklore, here.
💻 A youtuber explores inside the abandoned Birmingham City Hospital in this eerie video. As water drips from the ceilings, they encounter art deco pearl lamp shades, old phone boxes and peeling Disney stickers plastered to the walls of children's rooms. Watch here.
Our to do list
📖 On Wednesday, Booker longlisted author Sian Hughes will be talking about her new book, ‘No Such Thing as Monday’, at Waterstones. Set in Brum, the tragicomic novel follows Steffie as she navigates the trauma of a violent childhood. The conversation will be followed by a Q&A and book signing.
📽️ Catch a rich array of premieres, documentaries, shorts and restored classics at The Birmingham Indian Film Festival 2026 this week. Screenings take place through to 19 July at the Midland Arts Centre in Cannon Hill Park.
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The Midlands Rail Hub Alliance and Friends of the Earth abbreviations have been corrected to MRHA and FoE respectively.
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