What is dereliction? In a nationwide survey people were asked to define the word and say whether or not they thought it was a problem in Britain today. The revealing replies are reported in the current issue of Contact.(*)
Many people included run-down housing and abandoned factories in their definitions. Fewer people mentioned wastelands, abandoned rail routes, unkempt gardens, boarded-up shops and spoil heaps.
Other people’s definitions were far more vague. Some described dereliction as “the destruction of the environment” or “anything that had been neglected” or “burnt off and smashed up” or “worn-out land”.
Some 71% of those asked thought that dereliction was a problem in Britain, but rather fewer thought it was a problem in their own area. Younger people tended to be more aware of the existence of dereliction than the older generation.
The Government’s classification of derelict land (45,683 ha in 1982) excludes land occupied by run-down housing. Nearly 70% of those interviewed included run-down housing in their definition of environmental dereliction.
(*) The journal of the North West Civic Trust. Bolton Road, Swinton, Manchester M27 2UX.
