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Walsall women push back over 'worst town' label

Sian Filcherin Walsall
BBC Jennifer Blake, a "Queen" of Walsall, at the Queens of the City event by LGK in the Community. She has long black curly hair past her shoulders and wears a black and green patterend jacket over a black top. Around her neck are two gold chain necklaces.BBC
Jennifer Blake said she wanted people to "be proud to be part of the town"

A view of Walsall as being among the worst towns in the country is being challenged by a group of women who want to see its people and their spirit celebrated.

A report placed the Black Country town at the bottom of a list of 50 when measuring factors such as employment and the high street.

The news prompted local charity LGK in the Community to hold an event called Queens of the City to hail the town's inspirational women.

"I think people are missing the spirit of Walsall and understanding it," said Panikos Panayiotou, chief executive of the charity.

"We're celebrating the spirit of Walsall and the spirit isn't on a wall, it's not in a town centre, it's not on our history.

"It's in the hearts of the people of Walsall."

Lisa Habberley, a "Queen" of Walsall, at the Queens of the City event by LGK in the Community. She has long, blonde hair, past her shoulders, and wears a gold chain necklace and a brown dress with one shoulder strap.
Lisa Habberley said she wanted to inspire the next generation to be proud of where they were from

The Demos-PwC Good Growth for Cities Index 2025 came out in September and ranked Walsall, on a list of 50 places, two below near neighbour Birmingham.

The town showed "consistently below average performances across all indicators", the authors said.

It was followed by a report from the Metro in January which suggested living in the town was like "a real-life" episode of TV programme Shameless and a "war-zone".

"Walsall has had a lot of bad press. Unfortunately, we have got a few areas that do need attention but that's been dealt with," one of the event's "queens" Lisa Habberley said.

The teacher added that she felt the sense of belonging to Walsall was not being celebrated enough.

"Walsall people are friendly, they're community based and we don't tend to see that in the press," she added.

Host Suzanne Virdee sat at the far end of a panel at the Queens of the City event in Walsall, with six women sat in a row sharing their stories. The women have different coloured hair, from brown and red to blonde and black. They sit in front of a screen showing their faces.
The women were invited by charity LGK in the Community to talk about pride in Walsall and celebrate the town

The 16 women celebrated at the event were also all invited to bring a piece of their culture too by LGK in the Community, which uses food and heritage to bring people together.

NHS manager Jennifer Blake said: "With Walsall's recent credentials, if I can call it that, as one of the worst towns in the country, I think we shouldn't be swayed by that and still recognise its beauty, recognise its faults as well.

"Be proud to be part of the town and to just move forward."

Fashion designer Lauren Broxton said she set up her business in Walsall as she was proud of the area.

"People are kind and humble and funny and will help you and there's a real abundance of talent and skills that really deserves to be put on the map," she said.

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