Change, loss and Community: Resident Narratives of life on a social housing estate 2023 Update

Blezard, Eve

Abstract

This project explores the value and meaning of community for residents on a regenerated social housing estate in the North-West of England. ‘Community’ has continuing relevance in academic inquiry and application within social policy. It is frequently portrayed as a lost idyll that can be retrieved to counteract social decline; thus, an important means of examining social change. As it is contended that community is an interpretative concept; consequently, the project suggests that policy constructions of community should be challenged and explored.

It is further suggested that social policy directed towards social housing communities has become detached from the resident experience. Therefore, this research contributes to knowledge seeking to understand social housing communities from a resident perspective.

Fourteen semi-structured interviews have been undertaken with a purposive sample of ten residents on a social housing estate in the North of England. The interviews were transcribed and analysed through a thematic, narrative approach. The research found that community is frequently constructed through social and community places to which residents ascribe value and importance. These places were vital for facilitating supportive social networks and central to resident power, autonomy, and ownership. The loss of community spaces was seen as contributing to a rise in anti-social behaviour and a decline in social interaction. Subsequently, residents became unable to construct belonging to where they live, affecting their well-being and ability to feel at ‘home.’

The research will now build on the interview data through a co-research project with local residents and a third-sector community group. A pilot project is being delivered to enable residents to lead conversations about the role of community spaces in their local area to inform a potential community centre development in 2024.

Citation

Blezard, E. (2023, July). Change, loss and Community: Resident Narratives of life on a social housing estate 2023 Update. Paper presented at SPA Conference 2023, University of Nottingham

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: SPA Conference 2023
• Conference Location: University of Nottingham
• Start Date: Jul 5, 2023
• End Date: Jul 7, 2023
• Deposit Date: Aug 4, 2023
• Keywords: Community Housing Belonging Home Nostalgia Estate
• Publisher URL: https://social-policy.org.uk/what-we-do/conference-2/spa-conference-2023/#:~:text=The%20SPA's%202023%20conference%20is,the%20University's%20Social%20Policy%20department.
• Related Public URLs: https://virtual.oxfordabstracts.com/#/event/4139/submission/237