West Midlands Region parkruns
The parkrun Regionnaire status used to be a major part of parkrun tourism. Changes in the parkrun website in 2019 removed the regions making it harder to track completion status. All is not lost though as here’s the complete parkrun guide to what’s in and what’s out of the counties of the West Midlands.
The West Midlands is a diverse and geographically contrasting region of the UK, situated in the western half of central England, acting as a vital transport hub and sharing a long, scenic border with Wales. The region is composed of six ceremonial counties: Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, and the West Midlands (a heavily urbanised ceremonial county sharing the region's name, formed from land previously belonging to the three historic counties of Staffordshire, Worcestershire, and Warwickshire).
Geographically, the West Midlands is characterised by its striking transition from industrial heartlands to rolling rural topography, most notably across the Shropshire Hills: a sweeping Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty spanning the Welsh Marches. It contains the dramatic, ancient ridge of the Malvern Hills (predominantly in Worcestershire and Herefordshire) and the sprawling, historic lowland heath of Cannock Chase. Landscapes across the region are varied, ranging from the rugged gritstone edges of the Staffordshire Moorlands to the extensive industrial canal networks of the Black Country and the lush, meandering valley of the River Severn.
parkrun event numbers per county
There are currently 51 parkrun events in the counties of the West Midlands region.
Notes and exceptions.
The West Midlands ceremonial county contains 16 parkrun events that were formerly in 3 historic counties: 7 Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire.
The West Midlands Counties parkrun pages
Click on each of the images below to go to the page with details of the parkrun events for the county.
More parkrun posts
parkruns are free, weekly, community 5k events all around the world. I started in December 2012 and have been obsessive about it ever since. See my parkrun Collection page for details.
Featured and popular parkrun posts:
Completing all West Midlands parkruns
There are currently 17 parkrun events in the present-day county of West Midlands, of which I have completed 1. The first was Coventry which started on 6th February 2010 and the newest is Cofton Park which started on 8th August 2026. The name for having completed all parkrun events in the county is “West Didlands”.
Numbers exclude 2k Junior parkruns and any events that are not open to the general public such as prisons or armed forces facilities.
All of the West Midlands parkrun events …
Below are each of the West Midlands 5k parkrun events in alphabetical order. A few things to note:
The interactive maps below take you to the approximate location for the course, typically the centre of the park. See the course instructions in the parkrun page for each event for specific directions to the start.
Course maps and elevation profiles show the route at the time that I ran it and may have changed since then. See the Course page in the event’s page on parkrun.org.uk for the current course outline. Note that course outlines are from Garmin data during a specific run and may vary from the officially measured distance.
Please contact me if you spot an event that doesn’t have a course map and elevation profile and you would like to donate one from your own run. I’m also interested in maps and elevation profiles for courses that have changed or where there’s a regular alternative route (e.g. Horsham). I’ll need a GPX file from your run plus the date. I’ll include a credit for you and will donate £1 to parkrun.
Aston Hall
This parkrun event has been permanently cancelled. I did not complete this event before it was closed.
Historic County: Warwickshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: October 14th 2023. Final event: #34 on August 24th 2024
Reason for cancellation: Due a lack of core team. The local football club foundation had invested heavily into the event and made commitments in the process which were then never fully fulfilled. Unfortunately, there is no nearby running club and the local community also didn’t embrace the arrival of parkrun. This meant despite lots of effort by the ambassadors and local other parkruns no core team was ever built and most runners each week were tourists being no regular volunteer base could be established.
Links: Event Home Page
Babbs Mill
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Warwickshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 3rd August 2019
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Brueton
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Warwickshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 24th July 2010
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Brunswick Park
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Staffordshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 1st January 2022
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Cannon Hill
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Worcestershire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 28th August 2010
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Cofton Park
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Worcestershire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 8th August 2026
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Coventry
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Warwickshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 6th February 2010
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Dudley
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Staffordshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 4th November 2017
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
East Park
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Staffordshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
This event is also part of parkrun Compass Club
Inaugural: 9th November 2019
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Edgbaston Reservoir
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Warwickshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 14th August 2021
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Holbrooks
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Warwickshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 5th August 2023
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Oaklands
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Worcestershire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 9th November 2019
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Perry Hall
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Staffordshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 22nd November 2014
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Sandwell Valley
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Staffordshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 23rd December 2017
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Sutton Park
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Warwickshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 18th August 2018
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Walsall Arboretum
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Staffordshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 10th March 2012
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Wolverhampton
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Staffordshire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 9th February 2013
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
Woodgate Valley Country Park
I have not yet completed this event
Historic County: Worcestershire
Ceremonial County: West Midlands
Inaugural: 7th August 2021
Links: Event Home Page, Course Page
More parkrun posts
parkruns are free, weekly, community 5k events all around the world. I started in December 2012 and have been obsessive about it ever since. See my parkrun Collection page for details.
Featured and popular parkrun posts:
West Midlands High Points
The West Midlands, a Ceremonial County in the heart of England, was formed ass result of a series of political and administrative changes that took place over centuries. Before the creation of the West Midlands, the region was divided into Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire, The Local Government Act of 1974 marked a significant turning point in the history of the West Midlands. This legislation abolished the existing county boundaries and created a new county, the West Midlands. Today the 7 sub-divisions of the West Midlands are Metropolitan Boroughs.
For county-top hill-baggers, the region is, be honest, not very interesting. There’s a few good views but they’re mostly drive-bys in areas you’re not likely to go to unless you lived there or had an obscure hill-bagging obsession. If you’re in the latter camp, here’s a guide to the high points of the West Midlands. Click on the Blog Post link for each summit shown below for details on each.
Birmingham
Highest Point: Rednall Hill North Top, 250m
Historic County of High Point: Worcestershire (of which Worcestershire Beacon is the County Top)
OS Trig Pillar: N/A, nearest is TP4411 - Lickey Hill
Links: Blog Post, Wikipedia (Birmingham), Peakbagger
Flag shown is the official flag of Birmingham
Coventry
Highest Point: Corley Moor, 167m
Historic County of High Point: Warwickshire (of which Ebrington Hill is the County Top)
OS Trig Pillar: N/A, nearest is TP2413 - Corley Resr
Links: Blog Post, Wikipedia (Coventry), Peakbagger
Flag shown is the official flag of Coventry
Dudley
Highest Point: Cawney Hill, 251m
Historic County of High Point: Staffordshire (of which Cheeks Hill is the County Top)
OS Trig Pillar: N/A, nearest is TP1060 - Barrow Hill
Links: Blog Post, Wikipedia (Dudley), Peakbagger
Flag shown is the work of Andy Underscore
Sandwell
Highest Point: Turner’s Hill, 271m
Historic County of High Point: Staffordshire (of which Cheeks Hill is the County Top)
OS Trig Pillar: N/A, nearest is TP6743 - Warley Resr
Links: Blog Post, Wikipedia (Sandwell, Turner’s Hill), Peakbagger
Flag shown is the work of Andy Underscore
Solihull
Highest Point: Meigh’s Wood, 185m
Historic County of High Point: Warwickshire (of which Ebrington Hill is the County Top)
OS Trig Pillar: N/A, nearest is TP3975 - Hollyberry End
Links: Blog Post, Wikipedia (Solihull), Peakbagger
Flag shown is the work of jet_man1990
Walsall
Highest Point: Barr Beacon, 227m
Historic County of High Point: Staffordshire (of which Cheeks Hill is the County Top)
OS Trig Pillar: TP1049 - Barr Beacon Resr
Links: Blog Post, Wikipedia (Walsall, Barr Beacon), Peakbagger
Flag shown is the work of Andy Underscore
Wolverhampton
Highest Point: Sedgley Beacon, 235m
Historic County of High Point: Staffordshire (of which Cheeks Hill is the County Top)
OS Trig Pillar: N/A, nearest is TP5243 - Orton Hill
Links: Blog Post, Wikipedia (Wolverhampton, Beacon Hill), Peakbagger
Flag shown is the work of Andy Underscore
The Metropolitan Boroughs of West Midlands, with the highest points grouped by Historical County.
Note that not all of each Metropolitan Borough was fully inside each Historical County shown here.