Space, place and households: The growing divide in an era of austerity

Presentation to EASP/SPA Conference 2012University of York, UK 16-18 July 2012

Research Team:Dr Patricia Kennett (PI), Professor Richard Meegan, Dr Gerwyn Jones and Dr Jacqui CroftESRC Grant Number: RES-062-23-2963

Key issues

• The differential implications of the economic downturn for cities and households and implications for social policy

• De- and re-spatialisation of inequality and social differentiation

• Social, ideological and moral shift• Deepening of divisions?

Dual crisis

• UK cities as `agents of world city network formation’ (Taylor 2004)

• Economic revival, world connectivity and `engines of economic growth’

• Dual dynamic of financial and urban crisis (Aalbers 2012)

-Finance led accumulation regime- Urban restructuring, expansion and speculation

• Globalisation, cities and economic cycles

The research

• Highlight differential and uneven impact of economic crisis and austerity measures between cities and households

• Social survey of 1,000 households conducted by Ipsos-MORI in 2011 in Bristol and Liverpool across 10 household types

• Qualitative interviews with key stakeholders in Bristol and Liverpool

Urban ContextsBristol

• Research centre• Archetypal post-industrial

city• Financial sector – banking,

finance, insurance• Affluence / persistent

deprivation• Population growth• Highly skilled and well

qualified • Transport network and port

Liverpool

• Long history of economic decline

• Population decline• Concentration of

deprivation• “Transformation pole” –

reinventing• Capital of Culture 2008• Growth in financial services,

call centres• High level public sector

employment

Liverpool’s renaissance

• ‘The city’s better off. [...] Or, at least, it’s – how shall I put it – it’s less desperately poor. The red bits on the map are starting to shrink. It’s gobsmacking.’[037]

While another cited levels of economic growth:• ‘Well, it’s interesting for Liverpool because with economic

growth in a city that has outstripped, um, both the UK and core cities’ average, recently Liverpool’s experienced, you know, Liverpool’s been going through this renaissance.’[036]

Household groups: ACORN

categories

% of population

Category Group Bristol Liverpool UK

Wealthy Achievers

Affluent Greys 4.71 2.62 7.90

Flourishing Families 8.43 7.43 9.00

Urban Prosperity Educated Urbanites 4.88 1.67 5.50

Comfortably Off

Starting Out 7.23 1.34 3.10

Secure Families 16.32 19.41 15.50

Prudent Pensioners 3.50 3.28 2.70

Moderate Means

Post-Industrial Families 9.90 4.54 4.70

Blue Collar Roots 7.52 10.60 7.50

Hard PressedStruggling Families 11.27 23.56 13.30

Burdened Singles 2.62 9.10 4.20

Perceived changes in household finances

Households’ ability to meet living costs

Unemployment 16-24 year old age group (% unemployment rates)

Local Government Finance Settlements

Authority Estimated 2011-12 Revenue

Spending Power (including NHS

support for social care)

(£million)

Change in 2011-12 revenue

spending power

(%)

Estimated 2012-13 Revenue

Spending Power (including NHS

support for social care)

(£million)

Change in 2011-12 revenue

spending power

(%)

Total Percentage

Change 2011/12 & 2012/13

(%)

Liverpool 563.819 -11.34 530.461 -7.14 -18.48

Knowsley 193.935 -10.77 183.017 -6.53 -17.30

Sefton 269.486 -6.76 255.807 -3.93 -10.69

Bristol 416.300 -3.62 398.510 -3.05 -6.67

North Somerset 165.705 -2.35 159.567 -2.37 -4.72

South Gloucestershire

204.817 -2.42 198.029 -2.21 -4.63

Source: DCLG

Cuts in Spending Power vs Indices of Deprivation

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

0.00% 1.00% 2.00% 3.00% 4.00% 5.00% 6.00% 7.00% 8.00% 9.00% 10.00%Cuts after transition grant http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/localgovernment/xls/1796201.xls

IMD

2007

Ave

rag

e d

istr

ict

sco

re

htt

p:/

/ww

w.c

om

mu

nit

ies.

go

v.u

k/d

ocu

men

ts/c

om

mu

nit

ies/

pd

f/73

3520

.pd

f

Unitaries

London Boroughs

Metropolitan Districts

Core Cities

LIVERPOOL

MANCHESTER

11

14

3,23,20,7,21

15

1617

13

929

12

18

28

2427

266 SHEFFIELD

BIRMINGHAM

NOTTINGHAM

NEWCASTLE

LEEDS

BRISTOL

5

4

10

12

25

8

19

22

30

Complexity and diversity‘[...] our sense was we had lots of professional people coming through, who

you know had spent ... who’d been employed for a long time, and the idea of finding work and moving to a new job was completely you know anathema to them really, and they didn’t know how to go about applying for jobs, and they were completely unprepared for the way the job market is now.’ (Bristol)

‘I would say we really, really started noticing a change in the makeup of our client structure [...] about 3 years ago [...]. I noticed that we were no longer seeing just those people who are on a low level of income, who were on say a low level of employment income plus benefits, or just benefits alone – it was now people who had income from employment, who had a substantial asset as a property or a vehicle, who normally were sustaining their situation from their employment income, and maybe supplemented by some low level benefits, like child benefit for example.’ (Bristol)

Increasing numbers, different groups

‘It’s not so much an increase in the type of issues that come through, ‘cos the issues have always been there and always will, it’s an increase in the numbers with those issues. And it’s the difference in the groups that are being affected as well, it’s people who’ve been in work all their lives, have got no knowledge of the benefit system ... and it’s getting more and more complex.’ (Liverpool)

Respondents’ outlooks for the next 12 months

Final Remarks

• Tensions and contradictions of `financial/urban’ complex not been addressed

• Starker neo-liberal agenda impacting on cities and households in different ways

• Recalibration of risk and responsibility• Economic and social vulnerability to

uncertainties – resilience and resources