I visited one of Wolverhampton's largest estates to find out why people from across the city choose to live and work there
To be one of the most popular places to live in any city you have to have a lot of things going for you.
For the Express and Star's first 'Love Your Neighbourhood' feature of 2026 I headed to Ashmore Park, a large housing estate in Wednesfield that has been part of Wolverhampton for exactly 60 years.
Originally, Ashmore Park was one of the wooded estates Lady Wulfruna transferred to St. Peter's Fold to allow the park to generate income and food. A moat-surrounded farmhouse was built at sometime during the 14th century, three-quarters of which still exist today in the 'bottom shops' precinct.
The shopping precinct and dwellings were opened by Cannock constituency MP Jennie Lee in September 1958, four years after Wednesfield Urban District Council revealed plans for 1,500 homes to be built as part of an overspill housing scheme for Wolverhampton.
That scheme saw a surge in the population size, and it was reported in the Birmingham Post at the time that 6,500 people were housed in the 1,750 new homes, which opened on June 16, 1955.
In the years since the area has continued to grow, with three primary schools ( Oak Meadow Primary School, Corpus Christi Catholic School, and St. Alban's Primary School) and a secondary school (Coppice Performing Arts School), a community centre (The Hub at Ashmore Park) and The Ashmore pub all providing good service in the area. Ashmore Park is also home to the Wednesfield Aces cycle speedway team.
