Abstract
This chapter explores the character and specificity of Impact Hub Birmingham (IHB) through the lens of its online presentation, assessing its objectives, organisation and activities. Analysis frames IHB in terms of its status as social enterprise, detailing how this manifestation of ‘the hub’ idea engages individuals in debate and supports a particular idea of entrepreneurship that connects to wider of issues and urban disjuncture. The chapter explores the specificity of Birmingham as a setting for IHB and its commitment to place in relation to a discussion of the hub and co-working idea. A penultimate section locates projects cultivated within IHB in the context of critical perspectives on social enterprise initiatives. Conclusions reflect on the ambition of this iteration of the Impact Hub network, as well as the commitment and verve of its participants that offers a progressive space for social innovation whatever its limits in addressing the city’s considerable social and economic problems.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Allen, K., & Hollingworth, S. (2013). “Sticky subjects” or “cosmopolitan creative”? Social class, place and urban young people’s aspirations for work in the knowledge economy. Urban Studies,50(3), 499–517.
Anderson, R. B., Honig, B., & Peredo, A. M. (2006). Communities in the global economy: Where social and indigenous entrepreneurship meet. In C. Steyaert & D. Hjorth (Eds.), Entrepreneurship as social change. Cheltenham and Northampton: Edward Elgar.
Anon. (2014). Journey so far. Available at https://birmingham.impacthub.net/2014/11/28/journey-so-far/. Accessed 1 October 2017.
Bianchini, F. (2017). Reflections on the origins, interpretations and development of the creative city idea. In I. Van Damme, B. De Munck, & A. Miles (Eds.), Cities and creativity from the renaissance to the present. London: Routledge.
Brookes, N., Kendall, J., & Mitton, L. (2016). Birmingham, priority to economics, social innovation at the margins. In T. Bransden, et al. (Eds.), Social innovations in the urban context. Cham: Springer.
Brown, G. (2016, April 2). The Birmingham post power 250. Birmingham Post. Available at http://www.birminghampost.co.uk/business/business-news/birmingham-post-power-250-west-11126796. Accessed 1 October 2017.
Brown, J. (2017). Curating the “third place”? Coworking and the mediation of creativity. Geoforum,82, 112–126.
Buckley, T. (2016, February 10). What’s Impact Hub Birmingham? Available at https://birmingham.impacthub.net/2016/02/10/whats-impact-hub-birmingham/. Accessed 1 October 2017.
Butcher, T. (2016). Co-working communities. In R. Horne, J. Fien, B. B. Beza, & A. Nelson (Eds.), Sustainability citizenship in cities: Theory and practice. London: Routledge.
Campbell, K. (2009). Rekindling the entrepreneurial potential of family business—A radical (old-fashioned) feminist proposal. In D. Hjorth & C. Steyaert (Eds.), The politics and aesthetics of entrepreneurship. Cheltnenham: Edward Elgar.
Cattacin, S., & Zimmer, A. (2016). Urban governance and social innovations. In T. Brandsen, S. Cattacin, A. Evers, & A. Zimmer (Eds.), Social innovations in the urban context. Cham: Springer.
Chapain, C., & Comunian, R. (2010). Enabling and inhibiting the creative economy: The role of the local and regional dimensions in England. Regional Studies,44(6), 717–734.
Chell, E. (2008). The entrepreneurial personality: A social construct. Sussex: Routledge.
de Peuter, G., & Cohen, N. (2015). Emerging labour politics in creative industries. In K. Oakley & J. O’Connor (Eds.), The Routledge companion to the cultural industries. Abingdon: Routledge.
Dovey, J., Pratt, A. C., Moreton, S., Virani, T. E., Merkel, J., & Lansdowne, J. (2016). The creative hubs report: 2016. UK: British Council.
Florida, R. (2014). The rise of the creative class–Revisited: Revised and expanded. New York: Basic Books.
Gandini, A. (2015). The rise of coworking spaces: A literature review. Theory and Politics in Organization,15(1), 193–205.
GBSLEP (Greater Birmingham and Solihull). (2016). Greater Birmingham for a greater Britain Gbslep strategic economic plan 2016–2030. Available at http://centreofenterprise.com/sep2016/.
Henry, N., McEwan, C., & Pollard, J. (2002). Globalization from below: Birmingham—Postcolonial workshop of the world? Area,34(2), 117–127.
Hewison, R. (2014). Cultural capital: The rise and fall of creative Britain. London and New York: Verso Books.
Hunt, T. (2005). Building Jerusalem: The rise and fall of the Victorian city. London: MacMillan.
Impact Hub Birmingham. (2015). Mission roadmap: Prototyping the 21st century Town Hall. Available at https://issuu.com/impacthubbirmingham/docs/impact_hub_birmingham_mission_roadm. Accessed 1 October 2017.
Jones, C. (2016). Co-working at Birmingham’s hub: Feeling the impact. Available at https://birmingham.impacthub.net/2016/07/18/co-working-at-birminghams-hub-feeling-the-impact/. Accessed 1 October 2017.
Kennedy, L. (Ed.). (2004/2013). Remaking Birmingham: The visual culture of urban regeneration. London: Routledge.
Landry, C. (2000). The creative city: A toolkit for urban innovators. London, UK: Earthscan.
Leadbeater, C. (1997). The rise of the social entrepreneur. London: Demos.
Massey, D. (1994). Space, place and gender. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Merkel, J. (2015). Coworking in the city. Ephemera,15(2), 121–139.
Modgil, K. (2015). A history of Thomas Walker and Son. Available at http://birmingham.impacthub.net/2015/05/05/a-history-of-thomas-walker-and-son/. Accessed 1 October 2017.
Naudin, A. (2018). Cultural entrepreneurship: The cultural worker’s experience of entrepreneurship. London: Routledge.
Olma, S. (2012). The serendipity machine: A disruptive business model for society 3.0. Utrecht: Society 3.0 Foundation.
Porter, L., & Barber, A. (2007). Planning the cultural quarter in Birmingham’s Eastside. European Planning Studies,15(10), 1327–1348.
Shiach, M. E., Nakano, D., Virani, T., & Poli, K. (2017). Report on creative Hubs and Urban Development Goals (UK/Brazil). UK and Brazil: Creative Hubs and Urban Development Goals.
Verity, M. (2014, December 13). Creativity, collaboration and community: Falling in love with Birmingham. Available at https://medium.com/hub-birmingham/creativity-collaboration-and-community-falling-in-love-with-birmingham-4a2b889139f9. Accessed 1 October 2017.
Virani, T. E., & Malem, W. (2015). Re-articulating the creative hub concept as a model for business support in the local creative economy: The case of Mare Street in Hackney (Creativeworks London Working Paper Series).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Long, P., Naudin, A. (2019). Producing Values: Impact Hub Birmingham as Co-working and Social Innovation Space. In: Gill, R., Pratt, A.C., Virani, T.E. (eds) Creative Hubs in Question. Dynamics of Virtual Work. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10653-9_11
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10653-9_11
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-10652-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-10653-9
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)