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Contemporary urban environments essays
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- AQA
This is a high quality bundle of 14 essays, ranging from 4 to 20 markers, on the reduced specification for contemporary urban environments, written by an A* student.
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URBAN 20 MARKERSDescribe and explain urban resurgence [4 marks]
Urban resurgence is the regeneration of an urban area that has suffered a period of
economic decline. UK cities, like Birmingham, deindustrialised in the late 20 th century.
Resurgence involves converting industrial architecture into housing or for commercial use in
order to attract a young demographic. For example, Birmingham created homes and 30
restaurants and bars from old warehouses. It is often led by government regeneration
schemes and has a positive multiplier effect as it attracts investment, yet can also cause
economic inequalities.
Assess the role played by the process of deindustrialisation in creating patterns of economic
and social wellbeing. [20 marks]
Deindustrialisation is the loss of jobs in the manufacturing centre, which occurred in the UK
in the late 20th century. This process plays a significantly negative role in the economic and
social wellbeing patterns of people living in urban areas. However, regeneration strategies
following deindustrialisation have the ability to develop city areas in order to mitigate against
the impacts of deindustrialisation.
The industrial revolution used to be a key factor for growth, as areas such as Manchester
were once famous for their textiles industry. The movement of industry away from the inner
cities leads to decentralisation, which has a significant impact on residential and retail land
use. One main effect of decentralisation is a decrease in social wellbeing in city areas. As
many businesses relocate elsewhere, there is often a loss of confidence and morale in the
local population. Following deindustrialisation, Manchester lost over a fifth of its total
population, which caused a significant change in the social wellbeing of the population and
areas became more derelict and deprived. Increases in unemployment cause poor social
wellbeing as it affects levels of crime and family problems. People are no longer able to
afford the same quality of life, which has a severely negative impact on locals’ quality of life.
This demonstrates the effect that deindustrialisation has on the social wellbeing of city
populations, as decentralisation impacts employment and crime rates.
Deindustrialisation is also a result of mechanisation, as it is cheaper to produce goods such
as clothing using machinery, and companies move manufacturing to rapidly industrialising
areas such as India. This causes a loss of jobs in many city areas, limiting the disposable
income of the population. This was seen in Manchester’s period of economic decline, as
there was a loss of over 50,000 jobs in the city. This causes several knock-on effects, as
other businesses then have to close down and there is a loss of tax and decline in local
services. This impacts the economic wellbeing of the population as more people demand
benefits and there is a de-multiplier effect in the city. However, deindustrialisation is also
linked to a rise in of service economy jobs. Tertiary and quaternary jobs increase, such as in
retail, computer programming and advertisement. These are often higher paying jobs that
attract more skilled workers into the city areas, which can then leads to a positive multiplier
effect as levels of income increase again over time. This shows that deindustrialisation,
although it causes unemployment and negative economic impacts, can also lead to a
positive change in employment in city areas.
It could be argued that deindustrialisation can also lead to positive impacts on economic and
social wellbeing in cities. Regeneration schemes have been implemented following
deindustrialisation of major cities, including Liverpool which lost 200,000 jobs. The Liverpool
ONE, New Deal for Communities project, focused on improving the lives of people in
Liverpool by transforming deprived neighbourhoods following deindustrialisation. The
strategy involved around 275 property owners in the area, and designed 5 retail zones in
order to attract various shoppers. The success of this project attracted over 28 million
visitors, boosting the economy of Liverpool as well as the tourism sector. This led to an
increase in job opportunities which increased both the social and economic wellbeing of the
, URBAN 20 MARKERS
population as their quality of life was significantly improved. However, the scheme failed to
address education in the area, therefore some aspects of social wellbeing were not included.
In conclusion, deindustrialisation has led to some significant negative patterns of social and
economic wellbeing in urban areas, such as unemployment, dereliction and a de multiplier
effect as a result. However, there have also been some positive effects, such as creating
jobs in the tertiary and quaternary sectors, as well as introducing regeneration schemes.
Therefore, although deindustrialisation has created some negative implications for
populations economically and socially, there have been some positive knock on effects as a
result of the decline.
‘Britain’s urban regeneration policies since 1979 have failed to address problems of
economic inequality and social segregation. The gap between the richest and the poorest
urban residents has widened.’ To what extent do you agree with this statement? [20 marks]
Evaluate the success or otherwise of urban regeneration schemes in combating the causes
and consequences of urban decline. [20 marks]
Urban policies are strategies chosen by governments to manage the development of urban
areas and reduce urban issues. Regeneration is a key element of urban policy since the
1980’s, with a ‘bottom-up’ approach to tackling these issues. There have been three main
urban regeneration schemes, which have only addressed the economic and social issues in
urban areas to some extent.
The London Docklands Development Corporation was developed in the 1980’s, with a focus
on property-led initiatives and creation of entrepreneurial culture. The urban development
corporation was set up to regenerate inner city areas, with funding from the central
government. The aims were to buy land, build infrastructure and attract private investment.
This scheme generated over 50,000 new jobs, 25,000 new homes and 5 health centres. As
a result, it reduced some social segregation and economic inequality as people had more job
opportunities and were able to afford better quality homes, reducing the gap between the
wealthy and the poor. However, it was argued that this scheme failed to involve the local
community, as homes became too expensive, and they were driven out. Therefore, the
London Docklands Development Corporation was not entirely successful at resolving the
social and economic issues in the area.
The Hulme City Challenge Partnership in Manchester was created in the 1990’s, a
competition-led policy with a focus on partnership schemes. Cities had to compete for
regeneration grants and those with the best schemes were awarded. This formed
partnerships with the private sector and local authorities. Plans were drawn to build 3,000
homes, with shopping areas, roads, and community facilities, as well as establishing 300
new businesses. Although this strategy helped to reduce social segregation, it was criticised
because unemployment rates remained significantly high, and it had economic issues for
areas who were unsuccessful in their bid as they lost government funding. As a result, the
Hulme City Challenge Partnership in Manchester was more successful at reducing social
segregation than economic inequalities.
The Liverpool ONE project, a new deal for communities scheme in the 2000’s, aimed to
transform deprived neighbourhoods and improve the areas quality of life. The focus of this
project was on the community, as it collaborated with 275 property owners in the area. It was
designed around 5 retail zones, each with a unique feel to attract varied groups of shoppers.
For example, Peter’s Lane has exclusive, high end stores, such as Harvey Nichols and Hugo
Boss. This scheme attracted over 28 million visitors to the city, boosting Liverpool’s economy
and tourism sector, reducing the previous socio-economic issues.
In conclusion, it is clear that each of the regeneration schemes for London, Manchester and
Liverpool had some impact on the issues of social segregation and economic inequality. The
least successful would be the London Docklands Development Corporation, as it failed to
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