In reply to Tristram Hunt
06 Jul 2010
Tristram Hunt in his recent Sentinel article identifies the central problems that have beset my hometown-Stoke on Trent- but it is a problem that has probably existed from since post Second World War. A reading of any local newspaper from before the 1950s will inform anyone that the long-term decline of the area is nearly getting on for 50 years.
Of course the area was badly hit by the mass unemployment of the 80s but over all something like 120,000 jobs have been lost in the traditional industries of steel, pottery and mining since the 50s
But I do not have a pessimistic view. I do believe that Stoke and the wider North Staffs area does have a future, but we live in perilous times.
Mr Hunt is right to invoke the names of Wedgwood, Brindley and the rest, creators of the Industrial Revolution who deserve their place in the Pantheon of people who made modern Britain. I have no doubt that spirit of enterprise still exists in the area, but the area has been ill served and opportunities have been missed. I recall as a young Stoke Councillor in the early 80s making the case for a transit system the same as was being proposed in Manchester and Sheffield using the old loop line. What could have been achieved in settling the transport problems of the area if we had such a system?
It is not as if the area has been starved of Government cash or lack initiatives. Since the mid 70s there have been a number and a perusal of the local papers over the years marks the launch of one initiative after another all of which, in banner headlines, offered hope and a route to turn the area around. The latest being the local pathfinder RENEW which offered so much when it began in 2004. But mistakes have been made perhaps the most glaring being the return of over £20 million to the Treasury because the regeneration authorities could not think of any projects to spend the money.
The problem has been, in so many cases; the authorities have had no confidence in the local people of North Staffs. How many times have managers been bought in to run these projects who have no commitment to the area. The City Council is itself a good example in this regard. The appointment of Mr Van Der Laarschot is the 5th Chief Executive since 2006. How can you build foundations for the future when the most senior managers in the authority have no passion for the area and seem to see it as another brief stage on their CV?
But I want to sound a more triumphant note and Tristram is correct in one regard. He rightly identifies the potential and skills of local people and the answer will be to harness this talent.
As a Stoke person myself who lived in Tristram’s constituency for the first 20 odd years of my life before going off to University and then serving as a Councillor in Hartshill for another 7 I have attempted to give an opportunity for people who feel strongly about the area and its potential to express their ideas.
A few weeks ago I set up the Regenerate Stoke Facebook site mainly because I felt a deep sense of frustration of how closed the debate has been on the future of Stoke. In the past I have given for free a number of ideas to the regeneration agency and have felt patronised by the response.
I felt a few years ago that more could be made of the Wedgwood connection and that an annual festival around the Wedgwood themes of Industry, Art and Design could be held to generate ideas. The idea did not get anywhere.
( And by the way I slightly disagree with Tristram that there is a tradition of valuing learning especially in science and engineering. The area has a rich tradition of producing people in the forefront of science from Lord Kearton in the north through to Oliver Lodge, RJ Mitchell, Thomas Wedgwood and others I had little awareness of. For example a friend of mine- an Old Longtonian- mentioned a father and son Professors' Astbury- father and son- who were pioneers in the structure of the keratin molecule significant in the wool industry who both attended his old school)
Regenerate Stoke has only been up a few weeks but has already attracted over 200 people and the site is brimming with ideas. Ideas such as the importance of art in regeneration, Green Energy schemes, the role of design, the possibility of setting up a LETS scheme, re establishing the Stoke-Lidice connection in the Czech Republic and the possibility of developing derelict land in the City. Ideas are there. The problem is for whatever reason the authorities have studiously ignored them and it is this that has to change.
Several people are mustering to organise a citizens conference on the future of the City in its second century to be held in the autumn. We live in hard times but we need to be positive about the future. It won’t be easy. The road will be long. Some, like the great cathedral builders of Europe, may never see completely the fruit of their endeavours. But the pioneers who founded these great cities never got to see them in their first glory either.
We’ve come full circle. We are present again at the re-founding of a City like Stoke. This is the task, the duty, the calling that a new generation has chosen as its own, to write the history of their city anew. We need to make history again.
Bill Astbury (1898-1961) ,who
Bill Astbury (1898-1961) ,who I mention, was the world's first Professor of Molecular Biology. He also worked with Crick who went on to decode the DNA helix. The Astbury Laboratory stands at Leeds University.
Astbury was the son of a Potter Turner from Longton who then went to Longton High- then a Grammar school- and then on to Cambridge.
What is the possibility now of a working class lad from Longton having a Laboratory named after him and end his days as a prominent world renowned scientist?
Idealists...foolish enough to throw caution to the winds...have advanced mankind and have enriched the world
www.billcawleyresearch.co.uk
Despite the cloud of gloom
Despite the cloud of gloom that seems to hang permanently over things Stoke does have a future. As a city we have excellent transport links and a well established tradition of creativity, all the basic ingredients for success are in place now we just need a little extra push.
The first thing we need is a recognition on the part of national government that it isn’t just workers who should ‘get on their bikes’ when it comes to tackling unemployment, businesses need to be actively encouraged to move away from the South to cities like Stoke.
Local people also have a role to play in preparing for a better future, traditionally we have placed less of a value on education that in other industrial areas such as the Welsh mining communities. To profit from the new jobs that will be created by technology and the green economy we all have to be ready to learn new skills.
Where the opportunities to learn those skills don’t exist, or are under threat, as is the case with the funding cuts to local colleges, we have to be prepared to fight for them to be created or protected from savage and short sighted government cuts.
The last few months have
The last few months have undoubtedly been a difficult time for many people as the economic downturn takes a firm hold. However, we have to look for the positives – and rest assured there would be positives that fall out of these hard times. For example. This recession may create more cohesion within our society, but another possible outcome is an increase in innovation and creativity.
When times are good there is certainly less motivation for people to be creative. Some people naturally think long-term and plan for the future in a proactive way – they are constantly taking action to improve their surroundings. However, many others would not naturally contemplate change when everything is going well – it just wouldn’t occur to them
.
And that’s fine up to a point – as the saying goes ‘if ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ – but there is an inherent danger of complacency creeping in and people getting caught by the kind of dramatic changes we have seen recently. So one possibility is that the recession might ‘shock’ people who would not normally do so into having to innovate and take action.
No one likes change for change’s sake – but now we’re in a situation where it’s more like ‘change for imperative sake’. This is where the recession may have a positive impact – businesses have to balance thinking long-term – seeing beyond the recession – with looking for shorter-term opportunities that are presented by emerging market needs during the downturn.
Thinking about how to re-direct or re-apply the vast array of technology at our disposal is just one way in which we should now be innovating. Another is using the power of human relationships – by getting together in groups and networks to discuss ideas for handling the situation we find ourselves in.
There are plenty of examples from the past of how difficult times breed innovation – for example, World War II gave rise to some of the greatest technological advances of our age and some of the greatest music of the last century has been borne out of economic hardship; while economic security tends to breed ‘safe sounds’
Think of Harry Limes “Cuckoo Clock speech” in Third Man
So, adverse conditions can bring people together and trigger new thinking. Financial and social problems create a sense of urgency and a collective feeling that solutions must be found quickly. People start working on problems that they didn’t know existed the year before and consequently come up with solutions that are relevant in the here-and-now – solutions that are urgently needed.
We have to remember that there will always be bad times, but it’s how we deal with such setbacks that is critical. It’s important to heed the lessons that the recession is teaching us – but it’s just as important to remember them when times are good again. If we get it right we will all be stronger for the experience. To quote from Goethe “He that strives will be redeemed
Idealists...foolish enough to throw caution to the winds...have advanced mankind and have enriched the world
www.billcawleyresearch.co.uk
Adam is right, Stoke does
Adam is right, Stoke does have a future.
We just need to get rid of you bloody lefties from our political system first.
Post new comment