ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors explore the themes of autonomy, space and place within linguistically super-diverse urban contexts. In their interdisciplinary exploration of the interrelationships between space, place and critical, collective autonomy, they hope to gain insights into ways of creating more inclusive, urban, multilingual spaces. The authors highlight the potential of groups and communities autonomously to 'find the spaces for manoeuvre' in order to ensure that their languages continue to be learnt and to celebrate multilingualism, challenging the monolingual habitus within formal and informal urban spaces. They are concerned with language communities autonomously finding spaces where they can challenge the monolingual habitus, collectively creating the conditions in which multilingualism can be normalised and interlingual encounters nurtured. The authors aim to briefly reflect on the potential of collective and autonomous spatial actions in English cities to create the conditions for a plurilingual habitus to emerge.
