I've officially hit the intermediate problem!

I've long since grown out of the well known beginner locations (like Saunton) but it feels impossible to find anywhere that is:
a) Surfable with a hardboard
and
b) Not clogged with surf schools, tourists or unsupervised beginners

But (because I live in Birmingham, literally the most landlocked city in the UK) I'm not really a 'local' anywhere so am always (probably rightly so) a victim of gatekeeping.
I've tried to go to those wave gardens, but it just felt like a glorified swimming pool where beginners and tourists go with literally no sense of etiquette, and I came back with bad pool-cold.

Anyone willing to share somewhere quiet and reliable?