How to make friends in Birmingham

Birmingham is really a collection of neighbourhoods, each with its own high street and its own crowd. If you live in one, work in the centre and spend weekends somewhere else, you can go months without seeing the same new face twice. Add a long commute or shifts that don't line up with anyone else's, and it's easy to feel like everyone already has their friends sorted.

They usually don't. Lots of people in Birmingham moved there for work or study, and many would welcome a new friend nearby. The difference is who makes the first move.

The fix is the same as in any big city: pick a part of Birmingham that's close to home, and become a regular there. Friendships grow from repetition, so the aim is to see the same people every week without having to plan it.

Every area has its own character, so it's worth knowing which ones suit you. Our Birmingham area page covers each one in more detail.

The quickest way to make friends in Birmingham is to join one regular thing and keep going for at least a month. Weekly beats monthly, and close to home beats across the city. The first session is always the awkward one; by the fourth, people know your name and save you a seat.

Free, timed 5k runs take place every Saturday morning at Cannon Hill parkrun and Sutton Park parkrun, and plenty of runners stay for a coffee afterwards. Running clubs, five-a-side and netball leagues, climbing walls, choirs, evening classes and volunteering groups all work the same way: you see the same faces, you talk between activities, and after a few weeks you're part of it.

Once you've got chatting to someone, the next step is suggesting something specific. These are public, busy and easy to get to, which makes them good first plans:

Students have societies, halls and courses, which helps, but many people find their friends are all on one course or in one flat. Joining one society that has nothing to do with your subject is the easiest way to widen the circle. Graduates who stay in Birmingham after uni often find their friends leave; that's the moment to join something new in the neighbourhood you're living in, rather than waiting for the old group to come back.

International students and people who've moved from elsewhere in the UK are in the same boat in their first year, which makes it a good time to suggest plans. A walk round Cannon Hill Park or a trip to the Bullring on a Saturday is an easy invitation, and the people who say yes are often looking for friends just as much as you are.

If you work in the city centre and live further out, it's tempting to head straight home every evening. One easy change: pick one evening a week to stay in town. Brindleyplace, the canals and the Jewellery Quarter are all a short walk from the main stations, so an after-work plan doesn't need much organising.

Say yes to the team lunch and the leaving drinks, even if you only stay for one. Colleagues who are also new to Birmingham are often looking for exactly the same thing you are, and work friendships can grow into weekend ones quickly once someone suggests a plan outside the office.

At the weekend, try a different neighbourhood each Saturday for a month: a coffee in Moseley, a walk along the Harborne Walkway, food in Digbeth, Sutton Park on a sunny day. You'll work out which part of the city feels most like yours, and that's where to become a regular.

If you'd rather not wait for the club to do the introductions, an app can help with the first hello. PingMee lets you post a status saying what you're up for ('Food in Digbeth tonight?'), see who's nearby within the distance you choose, and send a ping. If they ping back, a private chat opens for the two of you.

Nobody sees your exact location, only an approximate distance, and nothing private opens until you both accept. You choose what you're open to, such as new friends or networking. It's free on iPhone and Android. See how making new friends works on PingMee, and keep the first meet-up short and public: our safety checklist covers the basics.