Overview
- The 2025 Demos‑PwC Good Growth for Cities Index put Walsall last on a 12‑measure composite covering employment, skills and housing affordability.
- The report also rated the town’s high street second least healthy and its job market third worst in the country.
- Residents describe gangs, drug use and fear of going out at night, with the Blakenall estate repeatedly cited as a trouble spot.
- Reporting and images show fly‑tipped rubbish, boarded homes and shuttered shops reflecting years of economic decline.
- Deputy leader Adrian Andrew says it is “time to change the conversation,” highlighting ongoing projects and the We Are Walsall 2040 plan, with no new national funding reported.