Residents In Newcastle Ashamed To Live There

People who live in Stanhope Street have revealed what it is like living in the area. Residents In Newcastle Ashamed To Live There.

Demographic And Cultural Changes

The Chronicle published an article yesterday after they interviewed several local people who reside in Stanhope Street, Newcastle, NE4 5JT. The results were pretty evenly split between positive and negative views of the area. The area is home to many traditional and multi-cultural businesses.

Some locals said the area used to have a "community spirit" which is now unfortunately lost to them and that the streets are riddled with litter, crime and gangs. Over the years, the area has gone through a significant demographic and cultural change which is much higher than the national average.

Seventy-two-year-old Joan Ellis said she had seen huge changes in the area since she moved to the street forty-five years ago and was heartbroken because of it.

She said:

"I'm actually quite embarrassed about living here. Whenever someone asks where I live I'm ashamed to say. When I first moved here it was a lovely place to live. It's not the same as it used to be, now nobody knows their neighbours. People always seem to miss bin day so they end up leaving bin bags out on the street and on the weekend there's litter everywhere. It's awful."

"Littered" Stanhope Halal Food Store

An Alternative Demographic View

Hamis Muhaid owns the Stanhope Halal Food Store, and his view could not be any more the polar opposite of Joan's. The shop owner who moved to Newcastle from Afghanistan said there is a great sense of community spirit in the area.

He also said:

"I love this area, it is very busy everyone's smiling and are really friendly."

Taxi driver Ansar Quaraishi backed his view and said:

"It is still very traditional here, but there are a lot more shops now, and there is such a great environment. I never want to live anywhere else."

You can read the full Chronicle article by clicking HERE.

Statistically Speaking

We at TR.News decided to take a look at some of the demographics and crime statistics of the area to see if people's perceptions were unjustified in any way. Many people who espouse an opinion like Joan's get labelled as "little Englanders" or "racist", pick your pejorative term.

Stanhope Crime Statistics For October

We found that just in the last month alone, the top three crimes committed in the area are anti-social behaviour, criminal damage/arson and violence/sexual crimes. You can find that information by clicking HERE.

Stanhope Demographics

We also found that the ethnic makeup of Stanhope Street is a majority non-white. The UK average is approximately 86% white. However, Stanhope Street is only 46% white.

% Of Residents Born In Britain

It was interesting to find that only 50% of those living in Stanhope Street were born in England. Many of those residents held passports belonging to Middle Eastern, Asian and African countries.

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Perhaps the racism label is coming from the immediate attempt to correlate crime with race. Have other factors been considered? Are these statistics being compared to any other inner city areas around the UK? Have other factors been considered, like local council investment in the area (or lack of investment), the reduction in police officers? Lets remember the tories have, in the last 10 years, cut police by 20,000 officers across the country. That is going to have an affect on crime. What age group is committing these crimes? What's the education funding like there.. have the kids got anything to do in their free time other than cause trouble? There are so many possible factors to consider yet the only one that is being looked at is the ethnic makeup of the place.