CSMP - Case Study - Birmingham - Structural Economic Change Flashcards
What is ‘structural economic change’?
Structural economic change is where there is a shift/restructuring in the dominant part of the economy and the related employment in an area (i.e primary to secondary, secondary to tertiary, Industrial Decline)
What were characteristics & function of Birmingham in Medieval Era to Pre-Industrial? [3]
1) c11th Poor agri. rural manor (Domesday Book)
2) Market established at manor in c12th = important market town for trade up until c16th
3) Small-scale metal working (i.e. making knives,buttons,nail) appears in c16th as close to coal/iron deposits in ‘Black Country’
What change to characteristics happened from early Medieval period to 1700s in Birmingham? [3]
Went from poor agricultural manor (i.e primary industry) to an important trade centre and then small-scale industrial centre (i.e switching towards secondary).
Demographically = pop. increase (1500: 1k 1700: 15k),
Socio-economic: Wealth increase
Major players in Medieval to Pre-Industrial era (1200-1750) in Birmingham and the economic change? [2]
1) King Henry II = gave royal charter to establish a market in 1166
2) De Birmingham family = lobbied the King to turn their manor into a market for trade. Economic change: poor primary farming community to centre for trade
Major players in Industrial era (1750 onwards) in Birmingham and the economic change? [3]
1) Matthew Boulton = est. ‘Soho Manufactory’ 1761 (700 workers in factory with ‘assembly line’)
2)Cadbury family in 1870s: built ‘Bournesville’ for workers of factory, ‘model village’ with housing & recreation
3)Austin Car Plant (22k employed) in Longbridge & Dunlop Tyres (10k employed)
What were conditions like in Birmingham by 1950s? (3)
- Prosperous economic city with big population (1.1 mill) based on industry.
- Unemployment very low (>1%).
- Poor air quality due to secondary industry and growing urban sprawl as economy grows (i.e. regional migration in and housing boom)
What economic change occurred from 1970s onwards in Birmingham?
Mass deindustrialisation in key ‘heavy’ industries - i.e car manufacturing, metalworking. Unemployment went from >1% in 50s to 19.2% in 1981
What were key international players involved in Industrial Decline in Birmingham from 1970s onwards? [2]
1) OPEC (The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries) = using ‘oil as a weapon’ and embargoing the supply of it to Western countries (in protest of Arab-Israeli War) made energy prices/fuel costs went up - $3/barrel -> $12/barrel
2) Foreign car TNCs (i.e Nissan, Toyota, VW, Renault) who made cheap/efficient cars that competed with Birmingham’s Austin factory
What were key players in the UK involved in Industrial Decline in Birmingham from 1970s onwards? (3)
1) Trade unions = closed factories made Birmingham less attractive to investors (another key set of players) - e.g. British Layland
2) Central government = gave grants and tax breaks to TNCs to get them to set up factories in other areas (i.e Honda in Swindon) but not in Birmingham
3) Birmingham council = cleared slums and got rid of lots of SMEs = lots of small businesses did not return
What structural economic change has occurred in Birmingham since late 70s/1980s?
Decline of manufacturing (1971 = 47% -> 2000s = 11%) and being replaced by services (Services in 1971 = 45% 2000s = 85%)
What positive change has happened in Birmingham since the late 1970s?
Local & nat. govt have tried to diversify the economy of Birmingham - shift away from secondary and towards tertiary (i.e a centre of business tourism, financial services & retail)
What role has government had in regeneration of Birmingham from 1970s onwards? [4]
1) Local govt. petitioned national government & attracted investment for NEC
2)Local govt got investment for Birm Int. Airport increase
3) Birmingham Heartlands Dev. Corporation (1992) set up to regenerate old industrial areas - given £100m by govt and £200m from EU/Private investments - Nechells Power station -> Star City
4) Upgraded public spaces through planning - i.e. Centenary Square
What role has E.U had in regeneration of Birmingham from 1970s onwards?
E.U funded projects in Birmingham - to improve social housing, build space for SMEs and maintain famous landmarks (£235 million between 2014-2020 alone) including upgrading NEC, Afro-Caribbean Millennium Centre, Bordesley Village funds
Key players in improving environment of Birmingham since 1970s? [3]
1) Local council (with E.U funding) upgrading and refurbishing buildings (i.e Victoria Sq & Centenary Sq, Bull Ring)
2)Canal & River Trust = important in regenerating canal locations like Brindley Place (cleaned up & turned into retail/dining area)
3) E.U has provided much of the funds to allow the local council to afford their upgrades
What role have universities had on economic change of Birmingham? Names of uni’s? [3]
1) 3 universities: Uni. Of Birmingham, Aston Uni & Birm. City Uni.
2)Make the city younger demographically by encouraging 50k students to come to city
3) Multiplier effect = students bring disp. income to city & spend on housing/services
What is role of transport in Birmingham’s recent regeneration? Impact on people & places? [2]
1) Huge investment in Birmingham New Street (£700 m) & shopping centre above station refurbished (Grand Central) plus the building of new station (Birmingham Curzon Street) to accommodate HS2
2) Trying to make ‘northern economic powerhouse’ - will provide new job opp. in Birmingham and areas around key projects (i.e Digbeth near Curzon Street - HS2 station, 2026) will be physical redeveloped - est. 36k jobs brought into areas near station
What socio-economic, demo & environmental impacts were ther during the early Industrial Era? (1760s-1900s)
Demographically = pop. boom (1700: 15k 1901: 1 mill),
Socio-economic: Wealth increase caused by industrial production (i.e metalworking in c19th - jewellery, gun-making) & services diversified (i.e banks like Lloyds est. to protect & grow assets)
Environment: factories established increasing air pollution, canals built to transport goods/raw materials
What socio-economic, demo & environmental impacts were there during the late Industrial Era? (1900-1950s) [3]
Socio-economic: Car manufacturing grew - Austin Car Plant in Longbridgre opened in 1906 and Dunlop Tyres in 1917 employing 1000s
Demographic: Pop increase = due to regional rual-urban migration = dense terrace housing for workers built near factories. Migration from within UK so white pop. dominates
3) Environment: Tram systems installed = people move out to suburbs = city sprawls. Industry growth pollutes canals, rivers & air. Slums start to appear in inner city areas
What was housing like post-WW2 & how did housing change from 1950s onwards in Birmingham? [3]
1) 5k homes destroyed, slums existed and 110k houses ‘sub standard’
2) 400 Tower blocks built (in total 81k homes constructed by 1970): much better conditions than slums
3) New housing built on edges of Birmingham and slum population redistributed (i.e. r-urban fringe Castle Vale, new towns Redditch
What environmental & socio-economic impacts did post WW2 housing improvements have on people & places? [3]
1) Environment = housing made of better materials & many moved onto r-urban fringe (better env. Quality)
2)Changed pop movement = people commute from suburbs into the centre (most of pop. moved to outskirts of city) - some areas became very high in demand (i.e Solihull - on r-urban fringe, close to green belt & transport)
3) Govt. implemented ‘Green Belt’ (no dev. area) to stop city sprawling too much
What demographic impact did we see in Birmingham in post WW2 era? Impact of this on place - built env/culture? [3]
1) Migration from Commonwealth countries (esp Carribean & India) as economic migrants to work in growing service sector as taxi drivers, hospital porters, retail
2) Immgirants altered built environment (i.e Birmingham Central Mosque) & new services (i.e “Balti Triangle”; ethnic restaurants & Western Union Centres = remittances)
3) Birmingham’s population has become more youthful since 1950s - immigrants but also growth of universities
What impact did regeneration in Birmingham from 1970s onwards have? (3)
1) Socio-economic: Major int. exhibitions/conferences at NEC = bring in wealth & new jobs. ‘Star City’ built = leisure complex = new services & 1000s of jobs. Unemployment has decreased from 19.4% in 1982 to 8% by 2020 BUT UK avg. = 5%
2) Services upgraded by govt. programmes (i.e New Deal for Communities upgraded broadband/work experience in deprived areas)
3) Environment: Heartlands Dev Corp cleaned up old ind. areas (i.e Nechells Power Station into Star City). Housing improved - ‘Bordesley Village’ (terraced housing removed, semi-detached with gardens put in).
What flagship projects were built in Birmingham and impact on people and places? [4]
1) International Convention Centre (ICC); hosted nat./int. conferences which bring in jobs & tourists bring in disp. income which use on city services
2)Symphony Hall; reimages Birm as ‘place of culture’ (orchestra is int. recognised)
3) National Indoor Arena (NIA) host large sporting events (i.e 2022 Commonwealth Games) which bring in tourists.
4) Bull Ring = Birmingham regional retail hub All these provide multiplier effect = tourists = need for hotels/services = money in economy
