Dimensiones de las estrategias metacognitivas de lectura

The primary aims of this chapter are to give context to the current socio-economic situation in the Gurnos estate and to demonstrate the extent to which a narrative of the estate and Merthyr Tydfil as a ‘folk devil’ has been constructed in the national and local press. This is achieved through an analysis of government and academic statistics which demonstrates the levels of socio-economic deprivation present in the setting, followed by a review of media coverage which is demonstrated to go beyond the reporting of these facts to the construction of an identity revolving around stigmatising depictions of poverty. In drawing these two diverging accounts together, the study positions itself between them; on the one hand, the structural accounts privileging the impact of top-down forces, on the other hand, more populist accounts of moral turpitude and idleness that construct a stigmatising identity out of poverty. It will argue that neither is suitably placed to capture the complex reality of deviance, conformity, deprivation, unemployment and disengagement, and in doing so, it identifies the gap into which this qualitatively-driven, mixed-methods account fits in uncovering the fluid dynamics at work in the setting.

A further aim is to draw on the historical narrative presented in the introduction and continue it through to the present day by presenting an overview of the period of de-industrialisation in the late 20^th century. This era not only underpins the changing conceptions of informal social control but also sets the scene for the socio-economic data presented in this chapter. In doing so, the current context of recession and retrenchments in public sector spending as well as the concentration of political discourse on the welfare state are put into their longer-term context, and the gradual decline of industry and the impacts of this are made clear. Accounts of de-industrialisation are presented alongside statistical data from this era to underscore the severity of its effects on the local economy and on the community itself. Following from this, the chapter then takes up a narrative of the present-day situation through the statistical analysis and media review.

‘BIT BY BIT, IT WAS, TIL YOU LOOK NOW AND THERE’S NOBODY MAKING ANYTHING...’

Mostyn, a local resident, gave this pithy assessment of de-industrialisation which underscores the idea that it was a process, rather than a single event. Unlike Walkerdine and Jimenez’s account (2012) which labels the closure of the steel plant as a ‘catastrophe’, Merthyr’s residents viewed it as a slow decline over at least two decades, as one by one, the factories closed, as well as Merthyr Vale colliery in 1985. As opposed to a single catastrophe which engulfed the town, the experience of Merthyr Tydfil encapsulated many small, personal catastrophes as workers were made redundant and families struggled to survive. In the Gurnos, this similarly took place over three phases as in ‘Steeltown’, although it is divided slightly differently; the drawn-out decline, the time ‘before’ the development trust came to the estate when it was ‘genuinely rough’ and befitting of its bad reputation – this period covers about a decade from the late 1980s – and finally the current era of huge voluntary sector efforts to ‘raise up’ the Gurnos and a burgeoning sense of local pride.

Jones (1972) gives a richly detailed account of the earlier years of this process through a series of interviews with Merthyr residents and his own observations on the situation facing the town. A series of short vignettes into people’s lives gives insight into the small personal struggles – the man over fifty who cannot find work, the eighteen-year-olds too old for shop work on a school-leaver’s wages, the unemployed men who are now house-husbands, and in several cases, the women going out to work to support their families.

What shines through in all of these accounts is the sense of quiet despair and fear that there is no future in Merthyr Tydfil for any of these individuals; several had already travelled away looking for work and come back empty-handed. Thinking forward to the advice given to the unemployed of Merthyr by Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Iain Duncan-Smith to get on the bus to Cardiff to find work, the continuities are sadly obvious.

Writing in a time of high national unemployment, Jones articulates the fears of those who worry they will never find work, and the sense of loss of pride mixed with relief amongst those highly-skilled individuals who have found employment at a vastly reduced wage and standing. The sense of having nothing with which to fill one’s day, the lack of

which were echoed forty years later in this study by local women who attended education and skills training (see Chapter Seven). He identifies the sense of insecurity noted by Walkerdine and Jimenez (2012); presciently, many of the people working in the factories were concerned that ‘if the Dowlais steelworks had gone after 170 years in Merthyr, it was argued, Hoover’s might go after a mere twenty-five’ (p65). As it turned out, it lasted for sixty-one years, but Jones notes the other factories that closed down rapidly during this era, as listed by ‘Edith’ and ‘Anwen’ below. Jones’ account concludes well before de-industrialisation did, but it clearly demonstrates the origins of the more modern labels of

‘culture of despair’ which are attached to the town.

Some data for Merthyr Tydfil are available online which show some of the longer-term trends regarding unemployment and employment by sector, and these also demonstrate the extent to which industry has declined over the later years of the twentieth century. Table 1 shows the employment rates of local men and women since 1931, the time of the Great Depression. Unemployment levels for men shoot up in 1981 even as the population declines, peaking in 1991 and improving by 2001. The number of unemployed women does likewise, although the number of women in work generally increases even as the male working population declines from its post-war high.

Table 1: General population and unemployment in Merthyr Tydfil, 1931-2001 YEAR POPULATION EMPLOYED

MEN

UNEMPLOYED MEN

EMPLOYED WOMEN

UNEMPLOYED WOMEN

1931 80,711 18,803 9,472 3,872 465

1951 69,982 20,476 1,714 6,595 294

1971 63,437 16,642 1,203 8,819 453

1981 60,050 13,843 2,212 9,072 1,037

1991 59,939 11,208 2,955 8,800 1,129

2001 55,983 10,501 1,024 8,852 584

This work is based on data provided through www.VisionofBritain.org.uk and uses historical material which is copyright of the Great Britain Historical GIS Project and the University of Portsmouth.

In 2001, census data reveals that women make up the bulk of part-time workers, with 42.75% of women aged 16-74 working less than 30 hours compared to 7.18% of men (see http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=6275343&

c=merthyr+tydfil&d=13&e=9&g=6495333&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=137605280980 0&enc=1&dsFamilyId=287).

Table 2 shows the employment by sector in Merthyr Tydfil from 1841 to 2001, and the dramatic decline in mining and manufacturing at different points in the 20^th century is apparent. Manufacturing booms briefly mid-century following the rapid decline of mining from its inter-war high; the only employment sector to make significant gains during this time is that of services, which shifts over time from domestic services to incorporate the service industry, government workers and financial services

(http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/data/dds_entity_page.jsp?ent=R_IND_SERV).

Table 2: Employment in Merthyr Tydfil by sector per year, 1841-2001

YEAR Agriculture Mining Manufacturing Construction Utilities Services

1841 536 5,352 4,137 865 1,971 3,283

1881 635 7,698 4,436 1,091 2,607 5,055

1931 391 13,842 3,467 1,173 2,939 8,116

1951 389 6,190 5,849 2,194 5,621 8,378

1971 90 2,580 10,460 1,750 1,280 8,590

1981 80 - 6,820 1,190 3,200 9,240

1991 110 630 5,460 1,480 1,490 10,520

2001 83 93 4,437 1,457 1,216 11,801

This work is based on data provided through www.VisionofBritain.org.uk and uses historical material which is copyright of the Great Britain Historical GIS Project and the University of Portsmouth.

Reflecting women’s shift towards the service industry, in 2001 4.27% of men aged 16-74 worked in sales or customer service, against 14.38% of women (see http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=6275343&

c=merthyr+tydfil&d=13&e=9&g=6495333&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=137605280981 6&enc=1&dsFamilyId=37

and

http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=6275343&

c=merthyr+tydfil&d=13&e=9&g=6495333&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=137605280981 6&enc=1&dsFamilyId=35 for this data).