Birkby is a large multi-cultural suburb close to the town centre in Huddersfield, in the Kirklees borough of West Yorkshire, England.

[1] An affluent suburb during Victorian times, Birkby sits in the Grimescar Valley, a greenbelt area of Huddersfield.

[4] From the study of old Ordnance Survey maps, much of the district of Birkby remained largely rural well into the 20th century, with the original settlement lying close to the town centre.

One of the arsonists, Shahid Mohammed, who had fled to Pakistan, was found guilty of eight counts of murder on 6 August 2019 and was motivated by an inter-family dispute.

Det Ch Supt Nick Wallen said after the verdict concerning Shahid Mohammed that the incident remains the largest single event of multiple murders that West Yorkshire Police has investigated.