Der bliver lagt stor vægt på respekt og ansvar i vores afdeling.

Here, der is a dummy subject. It does not mean physical there the way it often does in English.

In Danish, der is often used at the start of sentences like this when the real focus comes later. In Der bliver lagt stor vægt på ..., the important information is stor vægt på respekt og ansvar.

So the sentence structure is more like:

• Der bliver lagt ... = There is placed ... / Emphasis is placed ...

In natural English, we usually would not translate der directly here.

Bliver lagt is a passive construction.

• bliver = becomes / is
• lagt = past participle of lægge (to lay / put / place)

Literally, bliver lagt means is being placed or is placed, but in this sentence it is part of the idiomatic expression:

• lægge vægt på noget = to place emphasis on something

So:

• Der bliver lagt stor vægt på respekt og ansvar
  = Great emphasis is placed on respect and responsibility

This is a very common learner question.

Danish often uses blive + past participle to form the passive voice, especially when talking about a general action, process, or policy.

• bliver lagt = is placed / emphasis is placed
• er lagt often sounds more like a resulting state: has been placed / is already in place

In this sentence, bliver lagt sounds more natural because it describes what the department does or what is generally emphasized.

Compare:

• Der bliver lagt stor vægt på teamwork.
  = Teamwork is emphasized.
• Vægten er lagt på teamwork.
  = The emphasis has been placed on teamwork.
  This sounds more like the result of a decision.

This is an idiomatic expression.

• vægt literally means weight
• lægge vægt på literally means put weight on
• idiomatically, it means emphasize, attach importance to, or place emphasis on

So:

• stor vægt på = great emphasis on / a lot of importance on

Examples:

• Vi lægger stor vægt på kvalitet.
  = We place great emphasis on quality.
• Hun lægger vægt på ærlighed.
  = She places importance on honesty.

The preposition på belongs to the fixed expression lægge vægt på noget.

So you should learn it as a complete phrase:

• lægge vægt på noget = to place emphasis on something

You cannot normally switch på to another preposition here.

Examples:

• lægge vægt på samarbejde
• lægge vægt på sikkerhed
• lægge stor vægt på detaljer

So in your sentence:

• på respekt og ansvar = on respect and responsibility

Because respekt and ansvar are being used as abstract nouns in a general sense.

English does the same thing quite often:

• respect
• responsibility

not necessarily:

• the respect
• the responsibility

In Danish, abstract nouns often appear without an article when talking about them generally:

• Respekt er vigtigt. = Respect is important.
• Ansvar kræver modenhed. = Responsibility requires maturity.

So respekt og ansvar means respect and responsibility in general, not specific instances.

Because vægt is a common gender noun in Danish: en vægt.

Adjectives must agree with the noun they describe.

• en vægt → stor vægt
• neuter nouns would take -t in the singular indefinite form: et stort hus

So:

• stor vægt = correct
• stort vægt = incorrect

Yes, absolutely. That is a very natural active version.

Compare:

• Der bliver lagt stor vægt på respekt og ansvar i vores afdeling.
  = passive, more formal or impersonal
• Vi lægger stor vægt på respekt og ansvar i vores afdeling.
  = active, more direct and personal

The passive version is common in formal statements, workplace descriptions, policies, and company language because it sounds less personal and more institutional.

I vores afdeling means in our department and tells you where this emphasis exists.

• i = in
• vores = our
• afdeling = department

It comes at the end because Danish often puts location phrases later in the sentence, especially after the main idea.

So the structure is roughly:

• Der bliver lagt stor vægt på respekt og ansvar
  
  • i vores afdeling

= Emphasis is placed on respect and responsibility in our department.

Not always. Afdeling can mean different things depending on context:

• department
• division
• section
• branch
• sometimes even ward in a hospital

In this sentence, department is the most natural translation because the context sounds like a workplace.

The sentence follows normal Danish main-clause word order, where the finite verb comes early in the sentence.

Breakdown:

• Der = dummy subject
• bliver = finite verb
• lagt = past participle
• stor vægt = object-like noun phrase
• på respekt og ansvar = prepositional phrase
• i vores afdeling = location phrase

So the pattern is roughly:

• Der + finite verb + past participle + rest

This is a standard way to build an impersonal passive sentence in Danish.

Yes, it sounds somewhat formal and institutional, but still very natural.

It is the kind of sentence you might see in:

• company descriptions
• HR material
• job ads
• policy documents
• internal communication

A more everyday spoken version might be:

• Vi lægger stor vægt på respekt og ansvar i vores afdeling.

That sounds a little warmer and more direct.