Problems in the inner city
\nSocial
\nOvercrowding
\nCrime
\nDrugs
\nPoor educational achievement
\nEnvironment
\nUrban decay
\nLitter
\nGraffiti
\nPoor quality housing
\nEconomic
\nVery few jobs
\nCrime – loss of income
\nThe inner city – Housing issues
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\nPart of the demand for housing will be satisfied in inner-city areas. Successive governments have had a variety of strategies to improve living in inner cities since 1945 – most infamously the building of cheap, high-rise blocks of flats in the 1960s and early 1970s as a ‘quick fix’. Over the years, strategies have changed and there has been a greater involvement of private funding and the local community.<\/p>\n
Urban Development Corporations (UDCs) were a major strategy introduced in the 1980s, with London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) and Merseyside Development Corporation (MDC) being established in 1981. Even more UDCs followed. These were large-scale
\n projects where major changes occurred with the help of both public and private investment. Although the LDDC ceased to exist after 1998, the areas has continued to develop and change. During its lifetime, \u00a31.86 billion of public money was invested along with \u00a37.7 billion from the private sector. Changes are
\n continuing today, with further improvements in the transport system (such as the eastward extension of the Jubilee Line – underground), and the building of further skyscrapers at Canary Wharf (Heron Quay, North Quay) and other locations.
\nStrategy 1 – UDCs – 1980’s
\nPicture
\nThe London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC)<\/p>\n
The LDDC was at work for 17 years. In its final annual report in 1998 it headlined its achievements as follows:
\n\u00b7 \u00a31.86 billion in public sector investment
\n\u00b7 \u00a37.7 billion in private sector investment
\n\u00b7 431ha of land sold for development
\n\u00b7 144km of new and improved roads
\n\u00b7 the construction of the Docklands Light Railway
\n\u00b7 2.3kmsq of commercial\/industrial floorspace built
\n\u00b7 762ha of derelict land reclaimed
\n\u00b7 24,046 new homes built
\n\u00b7 2,700 businesses trading
\n\u00b7 contributions to 5 new health centres and the redevelopment of 6 more
\n\u00b7 funding towards 11 new primary schools, 2 secondary schools, 3 post-16 colleges and 9 vocational training centres
\n\u00b7 94 awards for architecture, conservation and landscaping
\n\u00b7 85,000 people now at work in London Dockland
\nStrategy 2 – City Challenge – 1990’s
\nPicture
\nCity challenge was a big initiative of the 1990s. It had a holistic approach to regeneration, where local authorities, private companies
\nand the local community worked together from the start. The focus of the projects varied. The Hulme (Manchester) City Challenge Partnership sought to improve the housing that had been built in the 1960s to replace old terraces that had once stood there. Integral to this was an attempt to enhance the environment, community facilities and shopping provision.<\/p>\n
What they did?
\n\u00b7 crescents were built in the 1960s and demolished in the 1990s
\n\u00b7 through City Challenge, Hulme received \u00a337.5 million
\n\u00b7 some old buildings were retained
\n\u00b7 homes were designed to conserve water, and be energy efficient and pleasant
\n\u00b7 there was a return to a traditional layout – Stretford Road (at the end of which is Hulme Arch was rebuilt after demolition of crescents (original course was through the middle of these
\n\u00b7 local schools and a new park have been built
\n\u00b7 the views of local people have been taken into account
\nPicture
\nStrategy 3 – Sustainable Communities – BedZed – 1990s-2000s<\/p>\n
Strategy 4 – New deal for Communities (NDC) 2000’s
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\nNDC was launched by the Labour Government in 1999 as a way of helping struggling inner city areas. It identified 39 of the most-deprived inner city areas in the country. The local communities in those areas were involved in helping to find solutions to the problems they were facing.
\nAston, inner city Birmingham, was identified as one of the 39 NDC areas. The scheme that was set up there is called Aston Pride. It covers three key areas:
\n\u00b7 Health and regeneration – \u00a3400,000 has been spent setting up the Aston Pride Community Health Centre
\n\u00b7 Employment and business \u2013 local young people have been giving help to enter the world of work through a work-experience programme and a dedicated guidance team
\n\u00b7 Education and lifelong learning \u2013 broadband centres have been set up to give local people internet access<\/p>\n
Rebranding
\nSome parts can suffer from a bad ‘image’. People don’t want to live there – and companies won’t move there – so the whole area suffers a downward spiral into deprivation. Rebranding an area involves giving it a new image, so that it attracts development and employment and leads to an upward spiral into success.<\/p>\n
Eastside in Birmingham, is going through this sort of revitalisation (putting new life back into something). The area is being rebranded as a ‘learning and technology quarter’ because a lot of colleges and university sites are located there, e.g. Aston University and Matthew Boulton College. Eastside will also have new leisure and cultural attractions, such as a large new city park and a revitalised canalside area, including new housing. The hope is that a positive and modern environment can be created and advertised that will attract new businesses to the area and boost employment opportunities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"