Birmingham Case Study

Question 1

Poverty vs inequality

Answer 1

Poverty - An absolute term referring to a poor standard of living which doesn’t change over time.
Inequality- refers to the economic differences between people at a variety of scales. This is all relative and not absolute like poverty.

Question 2

7 dimensions of deprivation

Answer 2

1) Income
2) Employment
3) Health and disability
4) Education, skills and training
5) Crime
6) Housing and services
7) Living environment

Question 3

Urban social exclusion

Answer 3

. Refers to the issues experienced by those in areas of multiple deprivation
. Poor education may mean they can’t access a good job and obtain suitable housing
. May lead to issues with social cohesion.
. Historically inner city areas were the most deprived following deindustrialisation
. However, this is not now always the case with some outskirts estates now a hotbed of crime, unemployment and poor health.

Question 4

Living wage

Answer 4

. NEF want to raise the minimum wage, requiring companies to publish the difference between the highest and lowest salaries they pay out and restoring the bargaining power of workers through embedding collective voice in the workplace.
. The Birmingham Living Wage Partnership want to become a Living Wage City.

Question 5

Schools

Answer 5

. The quality of education was particularly poor in inner city areas such as Aston.
. Birmingham want to deliver interactive sessions to cover the application of the Equality Act 2010 within a dynamic education context.
. Anti-racist sessions with schools to explore what it means to be anti-racist in Britain today and what is involved in offering an anti-racist education to children and young people.
. Partner with the University of Birmingham’s School of Education to deliver the Anti-Racism in Education programme of activities.
. The University of Birmingham school opened in 2015 the belief: “Together, we’ll flourish.”
. The school believes the multiple catchment areas, nodes, could be key in tackling segregation.
. The school also focuses on character education and encourage them to show courage, compassion, empathy, justice, honesty, on a day to day basis

Question 6

Low skilled workers

Answer 6

. The closure of factories in the manufacturing industry led to high unemployment
. Birmingham has the highest share of people with no qualifications of any UK city
. Birmingham is focused on improving the life chances of young people by focusing on early years education uptake
. Setting up the West Midlands Skills Fund to provide more tailored and targeted employment and training programmes, and providing better career guidance to young people and making the city more attractive to high-knowledge businesses

Question 7

Affordable housing

Answer 7

. Birmingham’s high population has resulted in pressures on housing.
. Not enough good quality and affordable housing for people in the city.
. Social housing is more affordable than housing on the open market.
. It can be rented from housing associations or councils at reduced rents, or it can be part-sold, part-rented as shared ownership.
. However, Birmingham council house applicants are spending 1 year and 3 months on the waiting list before getting a home.
. The city council has approximately 61,000 properties, and this is decreasing each year.

Question 8

Public transport

Answer 8

. Birmingham council want to ensure all residents have equal access to training and jobs.
. Ensure transport network supports businesses and investment.
. Provide our young people with safe routes to education and leisure opportunities.
. Design streets which connect communities and create happy
. The four principles are: reallocating road space, transforming the city centre, prioritising active travel in local neighbourhoods and managing demand through parking measures.
. Significant rail investment is also being undertaken locally and regionally including re- introducing passenger services on the Camp Hill
. Construction of A34 and A45 Sprint routes underway
. Introduction of cross city buses.

Question 9

Environment

Answer 9

. Building on greenfield sites has resulted in the loss of more green space and may make urban sprawl worse.
. (Emergency) Active Travel Fund schemes delivering extensive reallocation of road space for cycling and walking schemes.
. Birmingham’s Clean Air Zone launched in June 2021, covering all roads within the A4540 Ring Road.

Question 10

Fairness commissions

Answer 10

. Fairness Commissions advise local councils on how to make decisions and spend money in as fair a way possible.
. Each commission set outs to tackle inequality and poverty at a local level in a context of national government spending cuts.
. Some policies include: incentivising Living Wage employers, requiring companies to publish their pay ratio of highest to lowest earner, offering free school meals for children, and investing in enterprise to create good jobs.
. Birmingham City Council set up a social inclusion consultation process, as opposed to a Fairness Commission
. The Giving Hope Changing Lives consultation examined diversity of place, and well being and young people.
. Seven social inclusion commitments were developed for the key areas in the city.

Question 11

Sparkbrook vs Sutton Four Oaks background facts

Answer 11

. Birmingham is the 3rd most deprived city in the UK after LIverpool and Manchester
. Over 50% of Birmingham’s wards are in the top 10% most deprived wards in the UK
. In Sparkbrook only 8% of the population are 65+ compared to 22% in SFO
. In SFO 88% of the population are white whereas only 15% are white in Sparkbrook (working age)
. In Sparkbrook 62% of the population are Asian compared to 8% in SFO (working age)
. In Sparkbrook 9% have bad health, only 3% in SFO
. 74% in Sparkbrook are in the top 5% most deprived, 0% in SFO

Question 12

Sparkbrook vs Sutton Four Oaks economic facts

Answer 12

. In SFO 80% of the residents are economically active and 74% are employed, in Sparkbrook only 54% are economically active and 19% are employed
. In Sparkbrook 31% have no qualifications compared to SFO where only 9% have no qualifications
. In SFO 97% have English as their main language, only 58% in Sparkbrook
. 17% in SFO are managers and directors compared to 7% in Sparkbrook
. In Sparkbrook 12% are machine operaters compared to 4% in SFO
. 18% are elementary occupations in Sparkbrook, only 6% in SFO

Question 13

What is the most multicultural city in the world?

Answer 13

. Toronto

. Half of its population is born outside os Canada and are from 200 ethnic groups

Question 14

How many languages are spoken in London

Answer 14

300

Question 15

What % of Parisians were born outside of France?

Answer 15

20%

Question 16

How many major languages are spoken in Mumbai?

Answer 16

16

Question 17

What percentage of New Yorkers Speak a language other than English at home?

Answer 17

45%

Question 18

Reasons for city diversity

Answer 18

. Point of entry for migrants
. Specialist shops and services
. Tolerant of immigrants
. Employment opportunities

Question 19

Ethnic diversity in Birmingham

Answer 19

. White British - 53%
. Indian - 6%
. Pakistani - 13%
. Black - 9%
White British reduced from 66% to 53% which is considerably lower than the British average of 80%

Question 20

Why does segregation occur?

Answer 20

Self segregation: Where the individuals take themselves away to a certain area
Forced segregation: Where housing, services or other external factors create a segregated urban area

Question 21

Solution for cultural diversity

Answer 21

. Increasing children’s achievement by improving educational provision and opportunities in deprived areas; and seeking to improve literacy in areas where Task English can be a second language
. Increasing employment through initiatives to ensure basic skills and access to information and training
. Increasing community involvement by ensuring that the needs of minority groups are understood and met
. Providing facilities that encourage meetings of all sections of a community rather than separate ethnic groups

Question 22

Issues associated with cultural diversity (economic)

Answer 22

migrants may meet labour shortages particularly in
the service (e.g. the NHS) and manufacturing sectors. However,
the perception of ‘jobs for migrants’ may cause resentment and
racial intolerance, particularly during times of economic recession
where employment opportunities are fewer. Nevertheless, with
a younger age profile, ethnic minority groups are projected to
comprise a growing share of UK employment. These jobs will
remain disproportionately in the trade, accommodation and
transport sectors that are associated with lower-than-average
pay. In the business and other services sector, there will most
likely remain an under-representation where pay is generally
higher than average.

Question 23

Issues associated with cultural diversity (housing)

Answer 23

. New migrants generally are poor upon arrival in a country.
. Consequently, multiple occupancy in rented accommodation, usually within the poorer inner city, is widespread.
. Furthermore, ethnic minorities have traditionally been less successful in securing mortgage loans
. In a process known as residential succession, established ethnic groups may move to suburban locations leaving the housing empty for newly arrived migrant groups to subsequently occupy.

Question 24

Issues associated with cultural diversity (education)

Answer 24

. Children, particularly of primary age, will usually attend their nearest school.
. Such is the concentration of ethnic groups in some parts of an urban area that it has led to schools becoming dominated by one ethnic group.
. This has an impact on the curriculum as, for example, additional English lessons may be necessary and special religious provision may be requested by parents.
. In some cases, specialist schools may open, such as faith schools, as either academies, free or independent schools.
. There is also significant variation in educational attainment of different ethnic groups.
. A report published in 2015 by the Institute for Fiscal Studies reported that all ethnic minority groups were more likely to go to university than their White British peers (Figure 3).
. The report suggested that this is, in part, a result of higher aspirations by ethnic minority students and their families.

Question 25

Issues associated with cultural diversity (health)

Answer 25

. As many ethnic minority groups continue to live in inner-city areas, there tends to be a close association with poorer levels of health.
. However, this tends to be more a result of the poorer quality of the built environment than the underlying poor health of the population.

Question 26

Issues associated with cultural diversity (religion)

Answer 26

. Migrants may wish to follow their own religious calendars.
. This could lead to friction with employers and local communities.
. Misunderstanding of religious practices such as wearing traditional clothing is also a potential cause of conflict.

Question 27

Issues associated with cultural diversity (gender)

Answer 27

. Women from ethnic minorities might adopt different cultural preferences, traditions and norms.
. For example, there may be a tendency for women to be the primary carers and to look after family dependents (old and young).
. As a result, women from ethnic groups may be disadvantaged in terms of possible employment opportunities as they require more flexible working, which also tends to be more poorly paid.

Question 28

Issues associated with cultural diversity (food culture, pop music and sport)

Answer 28

. All help to support what is described as interculturalism or a blending of cultures.
. In a recent survey, around 75% of Europeans considered sport as a means of. integration, for example, by supporting a local or national sporting team or through competing in sport.

Question 29

Issues associated with cultural diversity (language)

Answer 29

. If the host country language is not adopted quickly, it will act as a barrier to integration and restrict employment and educational opportunities.