In the early 1990s the children's library based in the Birmingham Central Library burned down. Out of this devestation however, a new service was born and renamed The Centre for the Child. This book covers the first ten years of the service and how it has changed and evolved. To place the research in its context, there is much analysis of local and national government initiatives relating to both library and children's services in the UK. The research includes interviews with key figures involved in the creation of the new library, observations of the service and document analysis. All of which creat a unique insight into an even more unique library service.