King Edward VI High School for Girls has a long tradition of attracting pupils from a wide geographical area and is very fortunate in the range of public transport options available.
Train, bus and trams make the school accessible across the region.
Students are able to travel easily from areas such as Bromsgrove, Lichfield, Walsall, Wolverhampton, Solihull and Sutton Coldfield. We would encourage students to walk, cycle or travel by public transport wherever possible.
The school is situated near many bus routes. The 61 and 63 services run frequently between the city centre and Frankley along Bristol Road, providing a convenient service for those needing to change in the city.
The 76 goes from Bristol Road to Solihull, via Kings Heath and Yardley Wood, while the nearby 1 service opens up routes to Moseley and Acocks Green.
National Express West Midlands also runs the 1S service, which provides a bus in the morning and afternoon between Solihull Station and the KES driveway adjacent to KEHS, via Acocks Green and Moseley. This service, which is shared with KES, is also open to the public. National Express West Midlands travel cards are valid on this service.
Due to National Express West Midlands withdrawing the former 51S service between Walsall and the school, alternative provision is now offered to KEHS and KES pupils through Endeavour Coaches. Families opting to use this school-only service will make arrangements with and pay Endeavour directly.
You can register your interest in the service here. Students from Walsall not wishing to take this service can travel on the X51 between Walsall and the city centre, transferring to the 61 or 63 along Bristol Road.
Many students travel on the Cross-City line which runs between Redditch and Lichfield, going via New Street Station and stopping at Four Oaks and Sutton Coldfield.
University Station is our nearest station and students can walk through the university campus to school. It takes less than 10 minutes and is very safe, not least because so many of our students are walking the same route.
Direct trains to Bromsgrove, Droitwich Spa and Worcester are also available from University Station.
There are also rail options from Hagley and Stourbridge with a change to a bus or another train in the city centre.
Students travelling from the Wolverhampton direction have the option of taking a tram and then transferring to a bus or train in the City Centre.
Students are welcome to cycle to school and bikes can be locked safely in the bike sheds.
Please bring and use a good cycle lock and do not leave your bike in school overnight. Cyclists should wear a helmet and bikes should have good lights front and back in the winter months.
We would also recommend the use of a high visibility jacket and panniers for carrying things safely.
Pedestrians should enter and exit the site via the pedestrian gate from Edgbaston Park Road, by the Design Centre, or the pedestrian gate from Bristol Road by the KES Sports Centre.
There is no pedestrian access onto the site via the KEHS main drive, nor via the gate by Park Vale Drive (off Bristol Road): these are vehicle access only.
If you do need to bring your daughter to school by car in the morning, please drive onto site via the main drive on Edgbaston Park Road and proceed to the main car park.
Drop off should be in a space in the car park, not on the drive. In the afternoon, you must pick your daughter up from the KES Parade Ground, coming on to site via Park Vale Drive (B5 7SP).
The Park Vale gate opens at 3.45pm Monday to Thursday, and at 4pm on Fridays because the KES Cadets use the Parade Ground, and there is strictly no access before these times.
If your daughter is staying at school later than the normal end of the day, you can use the main KEHS car park but not before 5pm Monday to Thursday and not before 4.20pm on Fridays.
When driving on school grounds, please be sure to respect the 5mph speed limit.
Planning your journey
It may be useful to have a trial run on public transport before the start of term so students can familiarise themselves with the route. It is also a good idea for students to know of alternative ways home in case they stay for an after-school activity, miss a bus or if one of the services is disrupted.
To assist with planning your journey and finding the best combination of bus, train and tram travel from home to school, you can make use of the journey planners on www.nxbus.co.uk or www.tfwm.org.uk.
“There are always lots of other students getting on the train, so it’s a great way to make new friends who live near you.”
Neha (Year 10) Travels from Barnt Green
