History of Birmingham

If you are interested in living in Birmingham, you will be settling in an area that has been inhabited for approximately half a million years. This is based on archaeological remains found in 1892. Although evidence suggests that the axe found in the area was from a travelling party, it shows that the Midlands was not completely uninhabited before the last Glacial period. There has been an actual settlement found in the Birmingham area which is more than 10,000 years old.

Working in Birmingham

Birmingham is a city with over a million inhabitants and is second on the list of the most populous cities in the UK. It has a GDP of some $90 billion USD which also makes it the second largest economy in Britain and in the top 75 worldwide. The service sector is said to be responsible for more than 85% of the city’s jobs. In terms of employment for education, health and public administration, Birmingham is number one in the UK. In fact, the Globalization and World Cities Research Network has ranked Birmingham as a beta-world city.

Living in Birmingham

In terms of pure city population, Birmingham is the second most populous city in the UK with just over one million inhabitants. It is also the second most populous urban area in Britain with more than 2.2 million people living within Birmingham's urban boundaries. Enter the metropolitan population of almost 3.7 million people into the mix and you have an economic powerhouse. Birmingham was a major player during the Industrial Revolution and was even dubbed the world’s first manufacturing town in 1791. The city also has three universities and two university colleges but is best known for its Big City Plan which is designed to drastically improve the standard of living in the city within the next 20 years.

Top 10 Places

As one of the most populated cities in Europe, never mind in England, Birmingham has so much to offer its residents and visitors. If you have just moved to the city or have even been living there for years, you can still take time out and see Birmingham through a tourist’s eyes because you are guaranteed to like what you see. Here are the top 10 places to visit in Birmingham.

10 Top Companies

The city of Birmingham has the second largest economy in the United Kingdom and is rated well within the world’s top 100. The service sector accounts for the vast majority of the jobs available in the city with some of the world’s largest banks (Lloyds and Midland Bank for example) founded in Birmingham. The retail sector is particularly busy with the city having the third largest retail centre in the UK. Here are 10 of the top companies to work for in Birmingham, in no particular order.