In connection with project development, a selected grup will go on a study trip to Birmingham on 4-6 March 2012.

The focus of the trip is partnerships, service production and cultural urban development. The trip serves as professional input for the future development of the organisation Citizens' Services and Libraries toward Mediaspace.

Professional content

Like Aarhus, Birmingham is building a large new main library, which is one of the motivating forces for cultural development of the city

In Birmingham, an overall strategy (The Big City Plan) has been prepared. This is a plan for the rebuilding and revitalisation of the city - a plan in which the library plays a leading role. Partnerships, collaboration across sectors and co-existence are issues that have been considered from the beginning as part of the planning basis for the new library.

The library will be placed right in the very centre of the city where it will be built with the largest theatre in Birmingham, The Rep, and become close neighbours with other large cultural institutions as well as a new international conference centre sharing facilities with the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

The new library in Birmingham differs from Mediaspace in decisive ways but there are still important common endeavours where we can inspire and learn from each other. This applies especially to the community type of living where different institutions are gathered under the same roof and can collaborate on new solutions for tasks and services for users.

We will also consider the way in which cultural urban planning is conceived and organised in Birmingham and how they are working with realising The Big City Plan.

Program for the study trip (pdf - some of it in Danish only)

Photos from the trip

Click on the photos to view a large size.