Could this community project be the start of a national transformation? | George Monbiot
If there is hope, it lies here, in the most deprived borough in London. Barking and Dagenham has shocking levels of unemployment, homelessness, teenage pregnancy, domestic violence and early death. Until 2010, it was the main stronghold of the British National party. Its population turns over at astonishing speed: every year, about 8% of residents move out. But over the past year it has started to become known for something else: as a global leader in taking back control.
Since the second world war, councils and national governments have sought to change people's lives from the top down. Their efforts, during the first 30 years of this period at least, were highly effective, creating public services, public housing and a social safety net that radically improved people's lives.
There's a programme to turn boring patches of grass into community gardens, play corners and outdoor learning centres
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