We took our dog here last weekend following the recommendations here on Yelp. I've lived in…read moreBirmingham for 14 years and didn't even know the place existed despite having driven past it many times! Wow. What a place. The fist thing that struck me was how big it is for saying that I never knew it was there. A huge open golf course area (which is not your usual fancy pants golf club - dog walkers were very welcome), a children's play area and a beautiful wooded area. There is also a cafe but we didn't try that out. The paths are well kept and there are many dog waste bins. I didn't spot any dog mess on the ground - clearly it's a park for well behaved dog owners!! I was also struck by how well kept it is. The people who care for the park obviously take great pride in the park. There are some lovely sculptures and boards showing the history of the park. Absolutely loved it and it's now on our regular dog walking rota! I've deducted one point because the car park is tiny - we visited in February and it was very full so I imagine that in summer it's a nightmare. It did look as though there would be decent street parking around re area though.

This park has an active team who organise a great deal of activities year round. Their latest event…read moreis a tree walk and talk by Chris Shortis. Chris is a local resident and an expert when it comes to the many variety of trees in Warley Woods. We may take trees for granted but after one of Chris's walk and talk events you'll be forever hugging trees everywhere and telling them just how fabulous they are. A learn how to identify birds walk and talk by Liz Coleman who's an RSPB volunteer will get you twitching like crazy, you'll be amazed just how many birds we have flying about us. or you could just use the park to have a wander. It's 100 acres, about 4 miles from the city centre, offers free parking and is another of Birmingham's fantastic retreats.

Giant indoor kids play centre with slides, climbing frames, mini football pitch, pool table, dance…read moremachines etc. Lots of toys for babies and toddlers dotted around. Food and drinks are available at very reasonable prices and of good quality. Superb place to let the kids unwind and let off steam whilst you can relax, have a coffee and read a paper. Plenty of seating available. They also do birthday parties and hold special nights/parties. They held a Halloween fancy dress and disco great fun!

This is a fun, interactive indoor kids play area in an old industrial estate near Walsall…read more Basically, a large warehouse packed full of every windy twisty slide, enormous ball pit and fun climbing structure a kid could ever want. There are two sectons to CBW (isn't that a fantastic name?? I just imagine a kid going around with cymbals, delighting in making a horrendous mess), one a play area for bigger kids, and another for smaller toddlers. The climbing structures and mazes are so big and well built, my 6'5" husband wound his way round them without it falling down! There are plenty of tables and chairs for parents and parties to sit at and drink a decent cup of tea while waving at their children as they get into minor playground scuffles with other equally charming children. They cater for children's parties and large events (though if you want to hold your corporate event here, you may want to seek some therapy), and the food they do is pretty decent. If you go on a typical winter weekend, it will be slammed with tots, but the place is big enough to find a seat, if you don't mind the crowds. The staff aren't particularly helpful or particularly awful, just doing their job and getting on with things. The bathrooms are a bit dodgy, and absolutely freezing cold, but clean enough. All in all, if you need a place to take your screaming offspring, CBW will give you, ahem, bang for your buck.

Great place for the kids to burn off energy. my two boys were restless after a 3 hour car journey…read moreso they loved being able to have fun on the soft play and did not want to leave.

Located at Sydenham school, this children's centre is smaller than the one in Lillington and…read morecorrespondingly it does seem to offer less. However, there are still a range of drop-in sessions and other activities to be invited along to, so if this is your local centre it is well worth stopping by to find out what you can get involved with. A couple of times a year the Children's Centres also arrange big events, such as a bus trip to Weston Super Mare last summer. This centre has only two main rooms and it feels like it has fewer toys available, but the staff are very very friendly and welcoming, so it is still a great place to go

I like Kings Heath park, it's got a lot going for it. First…read moreoff, it's a like a park of two halfs, oh and it's massive. It's like maybe two, three or even four parks in one. You've got the footpath that leads all the way around the park, which is popular with walkers, joggers and cyclists. This path will lead you from one of the three entrances right down to where the park edges alongside the trainline. How many miles this walkway is I don't know, but it's a good walk to take it all in. The path snakes in around the parks water feature which is really quite beautiful and is popular with ducks. There is also a tea room, tennis courts, a bowling green, basketball hoops, and two childrens playgrounds. This is a supreme park with large open grass spaces to boot. Kings Heath park is a great asset to the south of Birmingham and has a great deal to offer visitors.

Kings Heath park is absolutely huge. It's great to have picnics at, go for walks, have colour…read morefights (as my friends and I did ) , walk the dogs and even entertain the kids. Everytime I go there are always various clubs going on which is great to have something to occupy time with! Additionally, it has very quiet areas, especially by the pond , and I usually take work and do it there. It's a great park!

I regularly visit this place with my 16 month old and have been doing so since she was 8 months…read moreold. The soft play area for the toddlers is brilliant as it is spacious and you can see them from anywhere you stand/sit in the cafe area. There is a ball pit and 2 little toddler slides. There is also a much bigger softplay area for the over 5's and a football enclosure. I don't rate the food as it is mainly junk...everything in breadcrumbs and chips and the fruit selection is always very scarce. It would be nice to see yoghurts or 100% fish/chicken goujons or a nice childs bolognase. The moms coffee morning on a Tuesday 10.30am during term time is great as there is free entry, it does get very busy though. One big bonus is free parking all day at the fort and the location is close to the many other retail shops the fort has to offer.

Perry Common Community Hall is a little treat nestled not far from Conker Island in the midst of…read morePerry Common / Kingstanding. The reason this place is so fab (aside from having had money from Advantage West Midlands, Birmingham City Council and Witton Lodge Community Association which has been used to make an amazing shiny new airy lovely space) is because the staff who work there are just passionate courageous people. You've all seen the knitted bull at the bullring at xmas, and more recently in a Union Flag getup? Well Witton Lodge and Perry Common worked together a couple of YEARS ago and managed to borrow the original lifesize maquette of the bull from it's current owner. It was installed in their carpark for an agreed period of time, during which they motivated local knitters to send in patches of knitting and then cobbled them all together to create a beautiful patchwork coat for the bull. THEY DID IT FIRST! They covered benches on the island, and lamposts and trees, and the residents were all so proud, and local shopkeepers would shoo away anyway picking at the knitting, and it was such a great community cohesion project done with very little money but lots and lots of love! Since then, the teams have continued working together to run other community events in their space and have continued building the social capital of the area! If you fancy popping along to the centre, there are plenty of classes that are run on a regular basis, and the rooms are also available to hire.

A community hall that has had a facelift makes this an even bigger gem than just a good community…read morehall. This one sparkles even brighter because it is supported by the Witton Lodge Community Association, which means right there that it is ran and supported by people from the area. Not only is it a great space with a hall and meeting rooms to hire but the staff are fantastic. They are passionate, helpful and enthusiastic. They are always eager to give new things a try, support people to get something happening in the community, and subside activity during trial periods to determine interest. Nestled in the heart of Perry Common, Kingstanding, on the edge of Conker Island, it is a greta place to visit and if something is happening on the island it's bound to be them that's doing it. They have knitting groups that were the first to fully cover the Bullring Bull, and if there isn't a group for something and there is interest then they'll get it happening. IJoin their Facebook group, find out when they are up to something and turn up and support them.

Hartshill Hayes is set in a wonderful woodland area. It has been for many years our family's…read morefavourite walking area around Nuneaton. The woods are very well managed and retain the right balance of managed and wild areas. This is a mature forest,with a large variety of native trees, woodland plants and wildlife. We never fail to go when the bluebells are flowering as they cover the undergrowth in a rich deep carpet. It truly is a superb sight. It is a wonderful place to go and unwind, sit quietly on a bench, watch and listen to the birds. Children of all ages love exploring and will also like the play area. Adults are sometimes spotted on the rope and tyre swings. The terrain is hilly in most places, but nothing too challenging. There are several options of walks and paths to follow, including the easy path, which is handy for weelchairs and pushchairs. This path in particular will take you on the more scenic part of the park. On a clear day you can see the steam rising from the power station in Burton-on-Trent. There are a few picnic tables and it makes for a lovely day out when the weather is nice. Few people realise how beautiful the woods can be when it is raining, as long as you are well covered! Parking is cheap £1.50 a day, we buy the season ticket and come on the drop of a hat.

We love taking our dog here, it's great to walk through the woods and admire the scenery and we…read moreeven bought a 12 month parking permit.