The challenges faced by a Birmingham family in the twenty-first century

University News Last updated 31 October 2014

Families in Birmingham will be the key focus at a symposium held in the Library of Birmingham next week.

The event, organised in collaboration with Birmingham City University’s Dr Liz Yardley, takes its inspiration from Ikon gallery’s ‘A Real Birmingham Family’ project and will address the challenges families face in Birmingham in the twenty-first century.

Sculpture shows 'the principle of flexibility'

Earlier this week Ikon unveiled the A Real Birmingham Family public sculpture in Centenary Square, outside the Library of Birmingham, which was a culmination of a four-year project with Turner Prize-winning artist Gillian Wearing.

During 2011 and 2012, residents of Birmingham were encouraged to nominate their families to be the face of Birmingham. No limits were placed on how the twenty-first century family might define itself and hundreds of families responded, including groups of friends, single parents and people living alone.

The Jones family – two sisters, Roma and Emma, both single parents, and their two sons, Kyan and Shaye – were chosen as A Real Birmingham Family by the artist and a diverse panel of community, cultural and religious figures, including Dr Liz Yardley.

The selection was made following discussions on what constitutes a Birmingham family: multiple generations, friendships and diversity as well as evidential links to the city.

Dr Yardley, Reader in Criminology, added: “In an age where families are increasingly ‘private’ entities, the fact that the Jones Family went so confidently into the public domain and displayed their family unit as something they were proud of and something to be celebrated was a very positive thing. 

“For me, as a member of the judging panel, the central concepts I was interested in were connectedness, continuity and reciprocity. I was looking for a family for whom Birmingham wasn't merely a 'backdrop' but a city in which they had deep roots and were very much embedded, where they enjoyed the advantages of the city but also contributed towards making Birmingham what it is.

“The Jones Family may not fit into a clear category or ‘box’ that we have a habit of placing families in, but more importantly they embody the principle of flexibility – They have adapted unflinchingly to their circumstances and just got on with things in a way that is typical of Birmingham families throughout history.”