I've included these on my blog in date order so that you read the oldest interview first, then the latest...
Tommy McGuigan is one of the last residents of the old Toxteth Street East Manchester which is currently being re-modelled.
The area, which was the filming location for comedy East is East and its sequel, West is West, as well as certain episodes of Coronation Street Manchester and Salford were once famous for.
Some other residents have moved to new housing elsewhere, others are already in the first wave of newly-constructed homes which will eventually be the revamped estate. But Tommy and a handful of other residents are the last men and women standing in the old houses.
He moved here in December 2001, and his first impressions were very bad, “There was a lot of violence on the streets, it was very run-down housing, with people coming and going every month or two”
“It’s only the last few years”, he continues, when the area has become quieter, as people have moved elsewhere”.
Tommy is aged 47, and his aim, at the time of arrival in Openshaw, was “to stay a couple of months then move on.” He adds, “I would have left a long time ago if I hadn’t met friends with people from the Eden Project and found myself less isolated”.
Having made some key friendships, this made a difference, but Eden
When asked about the future of the neighbourhood, Tommy is hopeful of a better future for the neighbourhood and its people. “The old properties are coming down, new ones are going up, and I hope to move into the new Toxteth Street Estate, hopefully a 2-bed apartment.”
So what does Tommy think of the new houses and apartments? “They look pretty nice,” he replies, “I’m waiting for the next phase [of construction] to be completed, but communication from the current housing association [Adactus] is rare – in fact non-existent”
Any what will it take for Openshaw to be successfully regenerated? Tommy offers 3 practical but challenging suggestions:
Firstly, the community residents “need to be more sociable, with street parties and the like bringing people together”. Second, local agencies and groups need to “work and plan together, keep their promises and try to preserve the sense of community, not scattering residents far and wide”. Finally, Tommy recommends a “stronger police presence – a local bobby on the beat – and more residents groups in addition to those such as Friends of Delamere, to help local people address these issues alongside the police and organise community events”.
Seeing this as a chance of a new start, Tommy, a regular volunteer for local project Justlife, adds, “When my health improves, I hope to find a new job”. Currently quite depressed in his existing house, the regeneration will be like a new start for Tommy, and bring fresh motivation in life.
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February 2011
Since the last article, we move forward 8 months and things have moved on somewhat for Tommy McGuigan.
One of the last residents of the old Toxteth Street East Manchester , which is currently being re-modelled, Tommy is now living in neighbouring Abbey Hey, in a rented flat which is further from his local friends and his base for volunteering, but which is in slightly better condition.
Tommy tells me that he moved off Silverdale Street 4 months ago and is now struggling to heat his poorly-insulated new house with the benefits available to him. Tommy has still not found work, though his contacts with local job agencies have some possibilities in the pipeline.
His job search has been made complicated by a recent relapse in his alcohol recovery, and lack of money to put credit on his phone. Potential employers are not patient if they cannot contact someone, understandably.
It is still a tale involving lots of waiting for Tommy.
Tommy tells me that all the promises made to him about the regeneration of the estate have been broken. I ask for an example, and Tommy gives 3: -
- “They promised to keep me and my neighbours together, and this hasn’t happened”
- “The timescale promised for people being moved [permanently into the new houses on the remodelled estate] has not come good”.
- “They promised to send regular updates to me and other residents about what is happening, and I’ve heard almost nothing”.
I ask who “They” are, and Tommy is less clear. It sounds like the Local Authority and developers. And whilst Number 3 above is simple, the reasons behind broken promises 1 and 2 are much more complex.
As far as can be told, the planned redevelopment of the estate, which involved consultation phases over several years, was designed during the property boom, when many people across the UK and Manchester were buying and selling houses, building and architecture firms were making large profits, and the main challenge was for first-time buyers struggling to get “on the ladder”.
There was a general air of hope as Manchester expanded its city centre living with Yuppy flats going up around the expanded centre and regeneration filtering East from the new Manchester City grounds and the rest of Sports City
Even Openshaw’s homes had gone from dirt-cheap prices to more respectable ones, and by the time Manchester City Council started the Compulsory Purchase process of the estate, one house sale in 2006 for a 2-bed terrace was for £42,000 (previously bought in 2002 for £17,500).
But approaching the end of the Noughties, as the housing market started to collapse, lots of firms started going bust, and the recession kicked in, the demand for new houses – in Openshaw as well as other places – disappeared, with many residents wanting to stay put and ride out the economic tide.
And so with less demand for housing, the construction firm slowed down its building process, thereby creating an even longer process of waiting for those who had to move because of the impending demolition of their old houses.
And with Government focused almost entirely on cutting the deficit, state-support for projects like this has, naturally, dried up.
As we approach the new Financial (starting April 2011), this is likely to deepen further.
And the result for Tommy? It’s simple.
He must wait in his temporary house for 12-18 months at least. And then, maybe, he can move to his new home on the revamped Toxteth Street Estate.
Caught in limbo between the house he is in now and the where he needs/wants to be, Tommy’s housing situation resembles the rest of his life. Low morale, boredom, low motivation and poverty – coupled with some lapses in his own self-discipline to stay sober - have all left Tommy in no-man’s land.
It brings to mind the Proverb, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick”.
Tommy has only just realised that years ago his drinking had got so bad because of the amount he was drinking but also combining this with taking anti-depressants. He had not been aware of how the two are a dangerous combination. And now he is drinking a little, he says he is not involved in fights anymore, but still it damages his friendships with people who care too much to say nothing.
So what difference would a permanent re-housing make to Tommy? Would it really give him greater motivation – to take care of the house and strive for a job and a better future? I ask him this and he replies, “I would like to think I would really make my mark on the new property [if given one in the end]”.
And is there a cut-off point, when Tommy will give up waiting and go somewhere else? “Yes, definitely. I am already looking at other places, though what’s been offered is generally too small”
And housing stuff aside, I ask Tommy what he would like to happen in his life over the next year or two and he says, “To sober up, start living, enjoy my voluntary work again. I’ve not been… of any use to myself, let alone anyone else recently”
And the big question I had to ask was, “Do you really want a job?” Tommy’s reply is telling
“Yes. Getting a job would be amazing. Holding one down is another thing”
He says the intent to work is there, but Tommy seems to doubt himself somewhat.
Which leads me to wonder whether Tommy’s worst enemy is not the Council or the Bottle or even the boredom, but himself.
Only time will tell.
