Civic Atlas updates

If you want to improve a place, you first need to understand it.

That sounds obvious, but it's surprising how many datasets only tell you facts about an area without helping you understand what those facts might mean together.

You can find deprivation statistics in one place, population data somewhere else, election results somewhere else again, and lists of charities in another database entirely.

The Civic Atlas (of Birmingham, for now) is gradually turning those separate pieces into something more useful: an understanding of place.

Version 0.6 shifts the focus from organisations to places.

The previous release started answering the question:

"Where do organisations actually work?"

This release starts answering a different one:

"What is this place like?"

Each ward page is beginning to evolve from a directory into a profile.

Instead of mainly listing organisations, it now brings together a range of information about the ward to build a broader picture of the community. Alongside the organisations operating there, you'll find information about demographics, deprivation, benefits, age profile, health, local assets and other indicators that help explain the character of the area.

None of this information is especially difficult to find individually. The challenge is putting it together in a way that helps someone make sense of a place rather than simply presenting another collection of statistics.

I've also continued improving the mapping and navigation throughout the Atlas, making it easier to understand how wards relate to one another, where organisations are operational and how they connect across Birmingham.

Like every release so far, this is another step rather than a finished product. The Atlas will continue to grow as more evidence is gathered, more organisations are understood and the picture of Birmingham's civic infrastructure becomes richer.

Next phase: Understand relationships

The next stage is less about adding more data and more about connecting the data that's already there.

Rather than simply describing organisations and places, future versions of the Atlas will begin exploring the relationships between them.

For example:

• Which organisations appear to be working towards similar goals?

• Where are there strong partnerships already in place?

• Which communities appear to have gaps in provision?

• Where might organisations benefit from collaborating?

• Which places face similar challenges, even if they're on opposite sides of the city?

The long-term aim hasn't changed.

Not to build a bigger directory, but to create a better understanding of civic infrastructure.