Place Matters in Birmingham – Neighbourhood Photography Project

I stumbled across this summer project which aims to understand what people like about their area, what makes different areas in Birmingham locally distinctive and what people would change.

We know that historic buildings contribute significantly to people’s sense of place and community. It will be really interesting to see what the results are and how many historic buildings, especially buildings at risk, feature!

Why not get involved yourself and help shape Birmingham’s new Neighbourhood strategy – you just need to take and upload or email a photo!

Details below

(lifted from the blog http://fairbrum.wordpress.com/2013/07/22/place-matters-neighbourhood-photography-project/)

Do you have a camera or smartphone?  Can you use social media or email? Do you know what  works well, and what needs changing in your neighbourhood? If so, we want to involve you in shaping Birmingham’s new neighbourhood strategy. 

On July 23rd we are launching a photography project to capture images of the city’s diverse neighbourhoods from different perspectives.

The aim of the Birmingham neighbourhood photography project, “Place Matters”, is to build a collection of images to show what is distinctive about different neighbourhoods across Birmingham and what local people value in their local environment.

Budding photographers are being asked to go out into their local community and take pictures that answer one of the following questions:

1. What do you like about your area?
2. What makes your area unique or distinctive?
3. What would you change about your area?

The project is being run as part of a summer of engagement activities to help shape a new neighbourhood strategy for the city. The images submitted will be made available via an online archive, as an interactive map and in local exhibitions.

To get involved, all you need is a camera or a camera phone and the ability to upload a photo via Social Media (such as Flickr, Twitter, Facebook) or email.  In short:

1. Take Photo
2. Upload it to any social media (or email it to us – fairbrum@birmingham.gov.uk)
3. Add caption or note where why and when you took the shot
4. Add the tag or hashtag #fairbrum
5. Geotag if possible!

For more information on how to submit your picture CLICK HERE or call the city council’s Challenge Unit on 0121 675 7819.

Cllr John Cotton, cabinet member for social cohesion and equalities, Birmingham City Council, said:

“Places matter. They define who we are and what we can achieve. We’re asking Brummies to tell us what matters in their neighbourhood – what works, what doesn’t, what makes it different and what can make it better. This photography project is a great way of involving people in that discussion about the future of the places in which they live – and how they can get involved in making a difference.”

The Place Matters neighbourhood photography project will run from 23 July to 31 August 2013.