To feel so sad about what happened to our town?

[AbstractThought]

I wasn't born here, DH was, and I have seen it discussed on MN in the past. I am aware that many towns across the UK are in a similar situation, so this probably isn't anything special, but since most people talk about shop closures I wanted to look at it from a different angle.

In the past decade we have a ton more issues in the town than previously, often relating to homelessness and addiction, and the town centre, what's left of it, has become completely over run by these problems with groups of people fighting and street drinking. A lot of these people are in extreme difficulty, whether mental health related and/or drug issues. Crime shot through the roof, and even about 8 streets away from this it spills outwards to us in what was once a fairly quiet place to live.
We now have a constant stream of siren noise, day and night, helicopters are daily and whilst we personally haven't felt in any actual danger there is a horrible sense of decay and hopelessness. Just nipping to the closest supermarket is depressing, there are a lot of neglected animals and people having meltdowns in the streets.

It is how it changed so quickly though. I can't get my head around where it all started or why. I am aware of the contribution of politics, covid, all of that stuff, but it seems so incredibly extreme. The siren noise is the worst, it is piercing and never seems to end. This also seemed to explode around the same time as the area went downhill. Probably a mix of police and emergency vehicles. It is difficult to work or relax at home and if you are a light sleeper it can have an impact there too.

What I am wondering is if this is commonplace now, in what was once a thriving town? It is the sheer amount of troubled people which seems to have escalated the most, and I can't get my head around how this has evolved, in such a short space of time. It is like they weren't here, then suddenly appeared, it is difficult to describe it. Obviously the council can't do a great deal to help and I have no idea what the answer is. The most upsetting thing is that a lot of these people are so messed up that they can barely talk in a way that is decipherable. This includes children, and there is a growing amount of people who have barely any teeth. This is a fucking severe problem and I have no idea what will help it. We have mucked in with a few local charities but it barely scratches the surface in my opinion.
We are moving due to work relocation soon, so whilst it may not be 'our' problem after we have gone, this isn't the point. I am just so sorry that it has come to this, in likely even more places than just here. WTF happened??

I've read that San Francisco has changed profoundly in recent years because of fentanyl addiction.

The impact of technology in getting rid of so many retail jobs is having an impact on low income families. There's pressure to work but fewer of the traditional entry level jobs.

The gap between rich and poor is more and more obvious IME.

I think the supermarkets have had a massive impact on our culture.

Definitely, a huge negative impact that is rarely pointed out anymore. They've taken the trade from almost every small business that used to exist: fruit and veg, butchers, bakers, fishmongers, shoe shops, clothes shops, hardware stores, tv stores, pet shops etc.

They've even gone after florists, gardening stores and now key cutters, carpet cleaners, coffee shops.

They have decimated our town centres, trades, job market in local towns. They even sell the produce for a loss to the actual producers when it comes to fresh produce and meat - they have the farming industry by the balls.

Oh, please. A lot of the places that voted leave were already living this appalling reality. Too many people didn’t give a shit because it didn’t affect them. This country doesn’t know how to stand together.

Stabbings are now becoming common in my town . A weekly occurrence.Used to be one a year if that .

I agree that responsibility to one's own has declined, but if you consider that meeting the cost of living requires working all the hours God sends if you can get a job, particularly at the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum it's hardly surprising.

There is a sex bias that women bear the brunt if caring for children and the elderly for example. Dementia patients often need 24 hour supervision for a long period before they need residential care. The system likes to keep them at home for as long as possible, unless you can afford private care. Respite is like rocking horse shit.

People could manage with a bit of support, but it's not available.

Same with childcare.

It's all a pretty pickle isn't it?

December and yes, around parliament, St James, the National Gallery.

The bits that are there as showpieces for parliament and tourists.

Amazon - people choosing to shop online, shops closing, less footfall.

If we want thriving highstreets we need to support them. No good going occasionally and then moaning that they've become empty because others haven't spent their money there.

Start shopping in physical shops again 😊

It was this bad under Thatcher. The North & Midlands got absolutely hammered. The South East and wealthy London couldn’t have cared less. Remember Harry Enfield’s characters ‘bugger all money’ and ‘loadsa money’? The 80s were dire, absolutely dire. Some of those places have never recovered from that period.

I think part of the problem is that even when alarm bells were ringing decade's ago, we were always promised jam tomorrow if we just kept calm and carried on. And it was a lie.

There aren't any shops to shop in - it's all shops producing low grade crap like b&m, pound land, plastic shoe shops etc

The only real shops I support wherever I can are: local bakery, sewing shop, small family garden centre, small family stationers, small art/cards shop.

That's literally it where I live, The rest are cheap chain shite selling plastic from abroad.

I can't say I recognise this to be honest although I fully believe you.

I do feel like there is more trouble locally. A stabbing a few weeks ago and a spate of car thefts that affected a large area and therefore many people. Ultimately though it was only one person carrying out each of those things...but it was all over town social media so it was hyped up.

I also feel there are some very poorly behaved young people, but I reckon every generation thinks this.

Our town centre is aesthetically beautiful but hardly any shops now. Multiple coffee shops though, and restaurants still in business, so people are still spending.

I've got a thread running about fear around the proposals to shake up benefits and sick note culture. It strikes me there is a crossover with the sentiments being expressed on this thread. All these issues are part of a melting pot of chaos and can't be considered in isolation.

Did you vote leave or remain?

it was pretty clearly said that’s exactly what’s going to happen in case of leave
vote 🤷‍♀️

When was the referendum? I remember doing some research for work on the decline of the town centres back in 2010. Labour was still in power. Well, Gordon Brown was.

Mary Portas published an excellent report about the same topic at around the same time.

I think everyone who complains about this and shops online, and I bet a lot do, should take a long look at themselves and realise that maybe they're the problem.

But in many cases it really did affect them horribly and will continue to impact negatively for generations to come.

Ebbw Vale for example was on the bones of its arse when the steel works closed. The EU was pouring money into Ebbw Vale. Hundreds of millions of pounds in EU funding - roads, rail links, apprenticeships, regeneration projects.

62% of people there voted leave - the highest proportion in Wales.

Another thread worth checking out is the one about the Carers Allowance scandal. Another barometer of the ideological strategies at play.

I had a niche bricks and mortar shop with a large virtual following. I tried to keep it going single handed after my DP died two years ago before I closed it just around Christmas. No footfall. I was encouraged to keep going as well, I needed to make a living (ha) and I had cheerleaders. No customers mind. I'm in around 10 grands worth of debt because my mindset was wrong apparently and I wasn't positive enough to manifest success.....

A similar shop has just opened up in a creative market space in the centre if town. (So minimal overheads). I see on social media my alleged customers fawning Over this new venture. It's hard not to be bitter or take it personally but I'm assured it's market forces and nothing personal.

I'm not an online fan - and I hear that many small online businesses are also folding.

I'm never going back into retail again.

I feel the problem is business rates , none of the shops local to us can afford them but the council need the money.

I feel the solution could be to get rid of business rates and fill the gap with an online transaction tax of say 2% on all online buying. This money could be hypothecated to replace money from the rates.

It may be that it can be less than 2% due to the sheer volume of transactions. This way the likes of Amazon pay to help struggling high streets, get shops back and the towns footfall should increase and feel a lot safer for people to use

Absolutely agree with you and I am a similar age.

(Someone up thread stated it was the same when Brown left Government (i.e. 2010) - what a load of bollocks.
Drug abuse, people living in tents, lack of access to services, decent housing etc etc - these are all very much the result of Conservative policies.)

Multiple coffee shops though, and restaurants still in business, so people are still spending.

There is A LOT of money about. You only have to look at the cars on the roads (Range Rovers, BMW, Jeeps galore), the way The Ivy Brasserie is packed, hotels like The Newt Hotel thriving and £1,000 a night Air BnBs all over the Cotswolds and Cornwall.

Turn the corner from these places and the gutters are full of rubbish and weeds, toothless beggars outside the Tesco Metro, empty shops, vandalised cars.

There is money - plenty of it - but it's in the hands of a few.

I cannot understand the mentality of 'those that have' in that they obviously want nice cars, meals, holidays, but don't mind driving through what are rapidly becoming shitholes to get to these places. Don't they care that the general infrastructure is crumbling to line their pockets? One day, they are going to wake up and find that their nearest town resembles something out of Blade Runner rather than Midsomer Murders.

People with money can go and retire somewhere nice like Monaco or similar.. so they won't be bothered.

2010 austerity had a long long tail. All those "wasteful" public services many voters cheered on the Tories cutting? Well turns out they did something useful. Not least offering a mutli layered safety net to deal with those people described.

Also covid accelerated changes that are detrimental to the public realm - more online shopping, food delivery, WFH - it reduces footfall and economy activities in central areas.

My mum and dad had their honeymoon in Southport in the 1950s.😄

I cannot understand the mentality of 'those that have' in that they obviously want nice cars, meals, holidays, but don't mind driving through what are rapidly becoming shitholes to get to these places. Don't they care that the general infrastructure is crumbling to line their pockets? One day, they are going to wake up and find that their nearest town resembles something out of Blade Runner rather than Midsomer Murders.

Churchview I’m sure you’re right, but what is the solution?
Drugs play a major part but now they are so readily available I have no idea what the solution is. In some countries in the Far East they clamp down hard on drugs but I can’t see that becoming acceptable here.
In cities in US drugs are a major problem which seems to be getting worse.