17 February 2024 , 08:56
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A quiet UK village has a ban on alcohol for a strange reason - and people who live there insist it has kept their area picture-perfect.
A curb on booze has been in place for decades, but residents don't mind as they don't have to put up with “drunken yobs" spilling out of pubs. If you are caught drinking on the iconic green of the chocolate-box village of Bournville, the booze will be poured down the drain. Made famous by the Cadbury family, the village is hugely popular despite premium house prices.
Despite the village being located just four miles from Birmingham city centre, it has no pubs or any shop selling booze which locals say makes it more of an attraction. Neil Harrison, 73, said: “People here don’t miss not having a pub, it’s the accepted thing and it makes it a more desirable location. It doesn't even enter the psyche. If you want a drink you invite a friend or neighbour round for a glass of wine at home, or you catch a bus and go to a pub in a nearby village.”
He added that the village had no drunken yobs spilling out of pubs and was like stepping back in time. It was built as a model community by the Cadbury family. Their Quaker heritage and beliefs led to a ban on alcohol and meant there was little crime.
The Bourneville Trust does not permit pubs, bins or caravans in front gardens and no-one is allowed to paint their door a garish colour . Colin, a volunteer for the Bournville Carillon Visitor Centre said a booze ban had been in place for for the past 120 years. He claimed: “Anyone seen drinking outside on the green or on the street will have their drink taking off them and poured down the drain."
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Bournville Village Green in Bournville in south Birmingham (Birmingham Live)The village trust said it had no powers to take alcohol off people drinking or to pour it away. These restrictions would be enforced by West Midlands Police and the local authority. Property prices in the area are at premium with an additional £50-60,000 added to properties.
On the outskirts of the village a value of £250,000 would be expected to be achieved but it rises to £310,000 for a similar property in Bourneville. The Mirror reported last year the community was built as a model village to house workers at the nearby Cadbury chocolate factory, the Bournville Estate, in Birmingham, now has 25,000 residents living in 8,000 homes.
Most of the houses in the village are owned by the Bournville Village Trust, founded in 1900 by George Cadbury with a focus on providing good-quality housing in a green environment. Cadbury was appalled at working class living conditions and wanted to provide decent housing for his workers. He planned the model village of well-built cottages with large gardens and spaces for recreation and leisure.