New horizons for old industrial areas: urban shrinkage and social capital in Blaenau Gwent, Wales

ABSTRACT

This article explores social capital in the shrinking old industrial area of Blaenau Gwent, Wales. The results indicate that economic change has impacted the social capital in unfavourable ways, leading to mistrust, a negative image of the area, low empowerment and low participation. Tradition appears to have played a strong role in disabling the transformation of the area, but new paths for social development are emerging slowly. Changes in social capital can be observed through the actions of entrepreneurs. Finally, trust between actors and flexibility in handling available resources are identified as key requirements for social transformation.

Graphical Abstract

KEYWORDS:

• Urban shrinkage
• old industrial area
• social capital
• social transformation

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their valuable feedback.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. In this article, we use the terms ‘shrinking cities’ and ‘urban shrinkage’ as synonyms.

2. In this article, we use the body of literature referring to old industrial areas, which is considered relevant for our analysis. However, in our case study, we focus on small urban centres in an old industrial area and not on the entire region (or a generally abstract notion of OIA) because we want to stay as close to the world of the people as possible. Therefore, we analysed small centres where daily life takes place and with which they identify.

3. To understand the discussion on social capital, we use a theoretical framework in which society is analysed in terms of state, market and civil society. Real life does not recognise such strict distinctions. This study focuses on civil society as a main actor with regard to social capital.

4. We define social transformation as any significant change over time in behaviour patterns and cultural values and norms.

5. ‘Medium-sized’ cities on a European scale are ‘city regions of less than 500,000 inhabitants’ (Giffinger et al. 2008).However, the meaning of ‘medium-sized’ depends on the scale one uses. In the Welsh context and in the context of many shrinking urban European areas, cities with a population of 50,000–100,000 inhabitants can be perceived as medium-sized (Ročak, Hospers, and Reverda 2016b). The spatial demarcation of the case study is based on LAU level 1.

6. For a review of social capital definitions, see, for example Portes (1998) and Lin (2001).

7. Official name: Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council.

8. Although interviews were the main method of data collection, one focus group was also conducted. The population of teenagers was challenging to involve in this research process and therefore a focus group was organised in the local community centre. In this way the group could be reached and their opinions heard. To ensure continuity and gain relevant information the same topics were discussed as in the interview protocol.

9. In this paper, informal activities refer to social participation (without ‘written contract’). Formal activities often refer to activity in associations with clearly defined structures. It includes, for example, belonging to or holding membership in an organization.

10. We spoke with eight entrepreneurs: a hairdresser, a beautician, two chiropodists, a sweets and gift shop owner, two fish-and-chips shop owners, and one ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) consultant. Although it could be argued that the term ‘small business owners’ would be appropriate, we decided to use the terminology of ‘entrepreneurs’ in this article. The respondents we interviewed create an entrepreneurial, active, and positive impact on their own living environment and as such add value for the disadvantaged area. Moreover, they are very much embedded in the local context and engage in risk-taking and strategic thinking. These behavioural aspects justify the use of the term ‘entrepreneur’. For the discussion in the literature on a distinction between small business owners and entrepreneurs see, for example, Bruyat and Julien (2001), Cartland et al. (1984), and Morris et al. (2016).

11. Maja Ročak

12. Codes were grouped based on similar qualities to identify patterns and themes within the data. Each theme was combined with the help of a similar theoretical framework, as presented in section 2.

13. If deemed necessary, relevant quotes from the respondents are used to illustrate the results and are not meant to be generalizable.