Can Middlesbrough learn from Malmo?

Modern History students from Malmo, a city of 250,000 on Sweden’s southern coast, and the University of Teesside have begun a joint research project to look at how urban regeneration is being tackled on either side of the North Sea.

Both Malmo and Middlesbrough suffered from the sudden collapse of traditional industries after mid-century prosperity. But the way the former Swedish shipbuilding capital revived itself may have lessons for the North East.

To find out, a party of Swedish students from the University of Malmo spent a week in Middlesbrough. This will be reciprocated in March when a group from Teesside visits Malmo.

Dr Natasha Vall, a lecturer in modern European history at the University of Teesside who hails from Stockholm, explained that the two groups of students are working on a MA History module called North European Cities – Space, Place and Identity.

‘It is being taught collaboratively by staff at Malmo and Teesside and includes a field trip to each city. Working together, the students are looking at regeneration, identity, culture and memory and comparing the two cities. By exchanging information and visiting each city they will be able to tap into the experience of arriving in and seeing their own city as a visitor,’ she said.

The Swedish students noted one immediate difference: Malmo began renewal with a brand new university on the main former shipyard site while Middlesbrough re-located Middlesbrough Football Club to the Riverside Stadium. Now, with the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (mima) and the new Middlesbrough College campus at Middlehaven, the two regeneration schemes may be moving closer to each other.

Robert Nilsson, 28, said: ‘Compared to Malmo, Middlesbrough seems to be an inverted city with working class housing in the centre and richer areas on the outskirts. It is the other way round where we are from and we were surprised to see some of the abandoned areas in the town centre. Malmo has changed its image through education, design and being high-tech and we be looking to see if this could work in Middlesbrough.’

Marie Wiman, 26, said she was shocked at the number of CCTV surveillance cameras in Middlesbrough. ‘I think they are quite intrusive and wouldn’t be welcome in Sweden.’

The Swedish visitors ended their stay by seeing Fulham – a team with links to Malmo – play Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.

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