Example Geography Essay

Examination of the scale and extent of gentrification and its implications in London.

Introduction

Definition - Gentrification refersto the physical, social, economic and cultural phenomenon where by workingclass and / or inner-city neighbourhoods are converted into more affluentmiddle class communities by remodelling building, resulting in increasedproperty values and in the displacement of the poor. (AbsoluteAstronomy, 2005)

It was Ruth Glass(1964) who was first believed to have brought the issue of gentrification tothe fore with definitions such as the one outlined below.

One by one, manyof the working class quartersof London have been invaded by the middle-classes - upperand lower. Shabby, modest mews and cottages - two roomsup and two down - have been taken over, when their leases have expired, andhave become elegant, expensive residences Once this process of 'gentrification'starts in a district it goes on rapidly until all or most of the original working-classoccupiers are displaced and the whole social character ofthe district is changed.(Hamnett, 2000)

This displacementof the working class and the rehabilitation of poorer and derelict housing hasled to the transformation of an area into a middle - class neighbourhood.(Smith, 1996)

Gentrification hasbeen described by Slater, (2002) as a fascinating, powerful and oftenfrighteningly rapid process which plays an important role in fashioning thephysical and social form of cities. Like the more widespread process ofsuburbanization, it is a process which has had a profound impact on the livesof urban residents in hundreds of cities.

Scale of Gentrification in London

According to Butler and Robson(2003a) there are four social 'fields of human activity these are: housing,employment, education and consumption. It will therefore be these factors whichare discussed here in identifying the scale of gentrification in the Londonarea.

Ruth Glass' (1964)statement shows the effect that gentrification has had on thehousing market: it is the process by which the original, poor and working-class residents, are displaced from neighbourhoods by rising costs and otherforces directly related to an influx of new, wealthier residents. TheHousing market is therefore an excellent indication of the change in an area,based on the contention that working class people can no longer to afford tolive in these areas with rising rents and house prices. Atkinson (2000) hastried to measure the gentrification of an area through measuring thisdisplacement of certain types of people.

London has experienced massivedeindustrialisation, but has also seen rapid expansion of business andfinancial services such as banking, legal services and management consultanciesas well as the continued growth of a number of creative industries such asadvertising, film and videos creation, music, fashion and design. (Hamnett,1999) Cities such as London have been characterised by the transformation oftheir industrial occupational, income and residential structure. The rise ofcities such as this with their cultural interests and housing market demandshas, in large part, been responsible for the growth of gentrification inpost-industrial inner cities.

Also of importance in discussingthe scale of gentrification is the on going social processes through whichformerly deprived or undesirable areas are transformed and made congenial tothe requirements of middle - class life. (Butler and Robson,2001) such asemployment, education and capital.

Schools and education are majorissues in gentrification. Butler and Robson (2003b) highlight this problem.Inner London is different from the rest of the country in that it is onlyrelatively recently that it has acquired middle -class households with childrenbeing left with what is widely seen as an education system which is seen asamongst the worst performing, particularly at secondary level, in the UnitedKingdom.

Middle - class households have theassets to be able to find non - local schools or use the private educationsystem. Working - class families do not have these same resources available andtherefore these children are not being given the same opportunities as theirmiddle - class peers to obtain a higher standard of education, and therefore theeducation infrastructures of the areas are being transformed.

Employment patterns have alsoundergone notable changes. In Inner London, a decline has taken place amongstthe skilled, manual and routine, non-manual groups whilst the growth in recentyears, has occurred amongst the professional middle class. (Butler and Robson,2003b) However it has been noted by Sassen (1991) who suggested that changes inthe labour market of 'global cities' results in social polarisation.Social polarisation is the various ways in which many areas arebecoming more socially distinct over time. In this case we are seeing areaswith an originally small middle - class population, becoming 'richer' as themiddle - class population increases and the working - class populationdecreases.

Hamnett, (1999) states many residentswork in business or creative industries in the central city or its environs,and have long or irregular hours and therefore want to live close to work andthe cultural and entertainment facilities offered by the central city. He goeson to note that traditional central areas are expensive and in short supply.Consequently, the new middle class have sought out new living opportunities inthe inner city. There has also been a noted increase in feminisation of theprofessional work force and the formation of dual career families. (Butler andRobson, 2003b) Over the last few decades more women have chosen to continuetheir careers as well as become mothers. This has led to the need to relocateto the inner city to avoid travelling long distances and consequently savingtime. This factor can therefore contribute to the gentrification of an area andhas be noted by Butler and Robson (2001) there is a large concentration ofmothers or nanny's pushing buggies as well as evidence of traditional familyarrangements being present in Battersea.

Localised patterns ofgentrification by differing middle - class groups are characterised bydiffering relations of forms of capital. This has involved examining differentstrategies of capital deployment in the attempt of a given group to transformthe locality in which can be seen positive changes in both the materialinfrastructure and symbolic values of places. (Butler and Robson , 2003a) Akinson(2000a) noted the benefits this capital has had on a community through increasingthe status of an area, its capital wealth leading to a decrease in socialproblems.

Extent of Gentrification in London

The gentrification of parts ofinner London which began as early as the 1960s are now taking on anincreasingly diverse pattern as different areas develop an identity of theirown and expand the choice for the middle classes. Gentrification appears to beoccurring mainly in the South and East of the city; this can be seen in areasas different as Docklands, Brixton, London Fields, Battersea, Barnsbury,Southwark and parts of New Cross. Many studies undertaken by Hamnett (2003)Butler and Robson,(2003a, 2003b) and Atkinson (2000) highlight these areas andinner London and show the scale of the gentrification in the London area.

All of these areas have beengentrified, but the processed has occurred for a range of different reasons.Gentrification does not appear to occur as a geographical phenomena but occursas a result of social factors influencing the extent of gentrification.

Research undertaken by Butler forthe Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) has given evidence to suggestthat fact.

The Docklands areas represent thesharpest differences with other middle - class settlements. In this area peoplewant convenient urban living which makes minimum demands on them. It isconvenient for work in the City, has minimum maintenance and low socialobligations and these appear to be what matters to the inhabitants.

London Fields has a relativelyminority middle - class presence but the inhabitants of this area are drawnhere by the strong social networks the 'new' residents here have created.

Brixton is busy and far moreethnically diverse. This area has long been thought of as the centre ofBritain's Afro - Caribbean community. It is now more culturally and sociallyheterogeneous than it was, but social groups still live along side each otherhere and there is also a lot of entertainment and services for the youngerprofessional.

The single, childless households ofthe early gentrifiers of these areas have given way to the new dominant duelearner households. Nearly forty per cent of these households have childrenliving at home. Butler and Robson (2001) noted and abundance of mothers withyoung children in their research area. They suggested that the main reasons formiddle - class people living in Battersea was, firstly its location, as it isonly ten minutes for Victoria. Secondly it has one of the biggest night timeeconomies south of the Thames. There are a large number of wine bars, bistrosand restaurants all doing an apparently healthy trade, which increases theappeal of this area for young professionals and those with young children.

Implications of gentrification in London

Gentrification is best explained as the social and spatial manifestation of the transition froman industrial to a post-industrial economy based on financial, business andcreative services, with associated changes in the nature and location of work,in the occupational class structure, earnings and incomes as well as thestructure of the housing market. (Hamnett, 2003)

As has already been discussed houseprices in the London area have significantly increased. The same increase inrent costs has also occurred due to landlord's realisation that increasedincome could be made from houses, flats and apartments in run down, inner cityareas providing they met an acceptable standard for the middle classes. As theinner city areas fell in to decay and there was a fall in the price of innercity land relative to rising land prices in the suburbs forming the basis ofthe Rent Cap theory formed by Smith, 1981. Cited on Tom Slater's Website. Lowincome families have therefore been forced out of the area as they cannotafford this increase in rent and cannot afford to purchase their own propertyin these areas.

Slater also noted a change in localamenities, services and shops. If you walk past a gourmet delicatessen, arenovated Georgian house, a Starbucks Coffee outlet, rows of expensive cars, ora flash new estate agency, the chances are that you are in an area which isexperiencing or has just experienced gentrification. The shops and conveniencesthat were once needed for the working - class community are not suitable forthose with a more expendable income and less of a community spirit.

London is a cultural and economicdiverse city. In the late 1990s twenty two per cent of Inner London's populationwere not UK nationals (Buck et al.2002) However, London's middle - classesshare a common relationship to each other which is largely exclusive of thosewho are not 'people like us.' (Butler, 2003)

Butler and Robson (2003b) noticedthis increasing segregation between the classes and cultures of London. Withsettlements attracting certain individuals and where the community integrationis of people who do the same, act the same, look the same, so families have nocontact with the families of different class or ethnicity. The claim thatLondon is a 'city going global' has become a cliché but never the less reflectsmany of the major trends such as finance, labour markets and producer services,but wider ones such as multiculturalism and cosmopolitanism appear to be beinglost.

Education standard decline has alsobeen assessed as an implication of gentrification but parents' solutionto this problem in gentrified areas appears to be pretty standard. Children areeducated generally outside their catchment areas and often in other boroughs.

The social structures of manygentrified areas have been changed and some have argued for the better, withthe removal of some social problems which can occur in working - class areas. Theimplications that this has had for London, has been the redefining of areas andthe perceived improvements that these areas have benefited from. However, thedown side to gentrification can not be ignored. The original working classresidents of these areas have been displaced, unable to keep up with risingliving costs and are unable to compete with others willing and able to pay moreto get in to an area. Local community spirit has already began to suffer andwill continue to decline in the long term as original residents have becomesegregated from the new middle - class inhabitants.

Conclusion

Gentrification is a complex phenomenonwith its exact causes relatively unknown due to the fact that no one theoryseems to suit all cities where this process has occurred. For London the causesappear to be massive de-industrialisation combined with an increase in whitecollar employment in the area. House prices have risen as have rents onproperties in the areas which have been gentrified could well be classed as acause of gentrification as it displaces the original working - classinhabitants, but it can also be viewed as an indication that gentrification isoccurring or has already occurred.

In London gentrification iswidespread affecting many inner city areas the most notable have been referredto in this study. Through studies of these areas, the reasons forgentrification have been shown to be diverse depending on the needs of the newinhabitants. This has lead to extensive areas of London being gentrified tosuit all 'new comers' needs. The scale and impact of gentrification has beenseen through looking at property prices, education impacts, social changes andthe flow of capital in to these deprived areas. Increased property prices andflows of capitalism in to areas leads to an overall improvement of the economicstructure of the area. Social problems become less significant and areas leftto decay and become derelict are redeveloped and 'improved'.

However, although gentrificationhas had such a positive impact on so many people and areas, the faults of theprocess must also be noted. Areas traditionally used for working - classhousing have been lost. Individual characters of neighbourhoods are beingslowly eroded as the needs of the residents have change with chains of stores'colonising' high streets. The original working - class residents have beendisplaced and forced to move to areas outside of London where property valuesand rents are more realistic for their incomes, and the ones who have managedto stay are some what segregated from the new residents who prefer to havetheir own network of friends. The community will then suffer due to a lack ofdiversity and a lack of resident collectively identifying problems and dealingwith issues such as poor school standards.

Some have argued and noted (Hartman1979 and Marcus, 1986) that gentrification has been both prevalent and sociallyharmful to areas, while others view as it bringing benefits to communities,increasing their status, capital wealth and improvement of social problems. Asgentrification is widespread and in the case of London comprehensive, this essaywill therefore evaluate the extent and scale of gentrification in London aswell as the implications it has had on the city both negatively and positively.