Dudley

Dudley is a metropolitan borough in the West Midlands centred on the town of Dudley and including Stourbridge, Halesowen, Brierley Hill, Sedgley and Kingswinford. The area developed around coal, iron and chain-making; former pits, foundries and canals remain part of the urban fabric. Castle Hill overlooks the town; within its walls lie Dudley Castle and Dudley Zoo, set above a network of limestone quarries that shaped local industry. Branches of the 18th- and 19th-century canal network cross the borough and were used to move coal and limestone to nearby works and workshops.

Today the council area combines town centres, industrial estates and stretches of green belt countryside. The Black Country Living Museum preserves reconstructed streets and workshops illustrating 19th- and early-20th-century working life. A navigable stretch of the Dudley Canal passes beneath the town and the Dudley Canal and Tunnel Trust runs boat trips through sections of tunnel under the urban area. Major roads such as the A461 and the M5 provide links to the wider West Midlands, alongside rail and bus services and ongoing regeneration projects.