During the 1990s, the UK Learning City Network was a large and influential movement with government support, the most significant national body of its kind anywhere. Yet, less than a decade later, it was in decline and now no longer exists. But while few UK towns or cities any longer use the term "learning city", the notion lives on as part of an integrated approach to urban development led by local authorities and universities. This approach offers clues to the global learning city movement about how to win the support of politicians, local and national, for a still valuable initiative.