We visited a bustling high street in the heart of the Black Country where residents love to visit the biggest Sikh temple in Europe
Beneath the negative headlines of Smethwick High Street(Rolfe) lies a vibrant, and welcoming community. Its local council recently submitted a bid for UK Town of Culture, and we've headed down to see what makes the area so special.
Smethwick is best known for being a densely populated area in the Black Country, and it is merely just four miles away from Birmingham city centre. The area tends to make headlines for its rather unsavoury parts, such as its pretty high crime rate, which tends to involve a mixture of violence, drugs, and antisocial behaviour.
We took a whirl through Smethwick High Street, and this is a mixture of retail and residential parts of the area pleasantly surprised us.
Smethwick is also the latest town to make its case in the competition to find the UK's first Town of Culture.
Read more: Should Smethwick become UK's Town of Culture? Sandwell Council makes the case - here's 5 reasons why
As Sandwell Council announced it would be entering Smethwick in the competition to find the UK Town of Culture 2028, which opened in January.
We took a trip down to Smethwick High Street to find out what makes the area so special and unique, so much so, that its local council feel it should make a bid for the new UK-wide competition.
Undoubtedly, the area has been heavily shaped by the post-war period. In this time, Smethwick was marked by immigration, racial tension, and de-industrialisation.
