Changing living standards

Changing living standards

1. The impact of boom, crisis and recovery 1918-39

   • Gov hoped for post war consumer boom to help bad economy
     • Due to rationing being lifted and the shortages ending there was a two year boom
       • The short lived boom didn't make enough employment to absorb the amount of soldiers returning
         • This then caused economic crisis and a decline in living standards
           • Was made worse by great depression
   • Boom 1918-1920
     • DLG promised 'Land fit for heroes'
     • Seemed achievable to begin with
       • Firms recalibrated for peacetime production, prices continued to rise and gov did little to regulate production
   • Economic crisis in the 20s and 30s
     • By end of 1920 there were 1 million unemployed, 1/3rd of them were ex-servicemen
     • Unemployment was not universal, some new industries were emerging and unemployment wasn't so bad there
       • In 1932, approx. 12% of those in the electrical manufacturing industry were unemployed compared with up to 70% of those in shipping
     • Regional differences
       • The decline of heavy industry had bad impact on living standards
       • the cities were these industries were concentrated got poor, leading to gap between wealthiest and poorest in 20s and 30s
         • At the height of the great depression unemployment in London and southeast was 11% compared to the 40% in wales
           • Areas such as Clyde and the Tyne were ship building and coal field regions
     • Hunger
       • Was a big problem for unemployed families, a survey in 1933 concluded that unemployment benefits were insufficient to provide a minimum diet recommended by the ministry of health
         • Working class women went hungry more than working class men when there wasn't enough food around. Mothers made sure that their children ate first, then their husband, meaning that women suffered more
         • People spent all money on food, so things like clothes got shabby and were not replaceable
       • Not until 30s that there was scientific understanding of deficiency diseases like rickets
         • For many families meant and fresh veg were rarities
           • People ate bread, margarine and tea, it made up most meals
       • However there wasn't this hardship for everyone, some areas in UK saw living standards rise. After 1933 'light industries' such as production of household appliances grew in the southeast and they experienced consumer boom
   • Improvements in living standards
     • The consumer boom
       • Household electrical appliances like washing machines and electric cookers were often purchased on credit and they filled homes in the 30s
         • In 1930 there were 200,000 vacuum cleaner sales a year, a figure that had risen to 400,000 8yrs later
         • There was a 300% rise in the sale of electric cookers between 1930 and 35
       • The growth was due to homes being electrified , which significantly improved living standards
         • It also shows that there was a market for consumer goods before the boom of the 50s
           • They were being supplied by new chains such as Marks and Spencer's and Sainsbury's
       • There was the 'teenage' culture (though the term was not used at the time) beginning, as teenagers bought clothes and records
     • Food
       • There was a wider variety of foodstuffs like fresh fruit which improved diets.
         • Some people believed fresh fruit was harmful to their children and most fruit still came in cans
       • Prises of basic food like bread fell
         • Even for the less affluent food improved
           • By the late 20s there were 20,000 fish and chip shops, with fish at less than 2p and chips at 1p, so it was afforable
     • Housing
       • Many moved form overcrowded terraces in inner-city areas to council houses in the suburbs - of the 1.1 million council houses built during the interwar period, 90% were on new estates.
       • The number of house owners increased - in 1914, 10% of the population owned a home, but in 1938 32% did
         • Was a result of gov policy
       • New houses in London =£450, but outside London =£250. Older houses = £125 in less affluent areas (cost less than a new small car)

2. The effects of 'total war' and austerity, 1939-51

   • During WW2 the gov directly intervened with food clothing etc
     • Germanys attacks on shipping meant that living standards were effected through rationing
   • Living standards also effected by London bombings, however there was better pay and work
   • Rationing
     • Meant that everyone had limited amount of food and resources, regardless of income
       • The creation of the Ministry of Food in 1940 had 50,000 administrators and meant pretty much everything was rationed with ration cards
         • In 1942, restaurants were subject to rationing too, stopped working class resenting wealthy people eating well.
     • There was also gov campaign which promoted a 'make do and mend' mentality and also gave ideas as to how be healthy
       • Substitutes for normal food were not nice, e.g. the lack of white flour led to the introduction of the National Loaf, which was grey and generally gross. Only 1/7 people preferred it to the normal bread
     • While people felt that their living standards declined, their is evidence to suggest that their health actually improved. This was because Ministry of Health supplemented food with vitamins and minerals.
     • The level of infant mortality fell during war (shows public health = good)
   • Working conditions
     • Lots of jobs in munitions with good pay
     • Good working conditions due to trade union negotiations
     • Average pay for workers increased during war, but their money could only buy as much as their rations allowed
     • To let women work in munitions, crèches were established in many factories. They were first set in in Nov 1941 and within 6 months there 667 of them that were open or in the process of being opened
   • Housing
     • Mass bombing = 40,000 deaths + 2 million homes destroyed
       • rural countryside was not directly effected
       • This destruction of cities led to the opportunity of town planners and architects to rebuild them, with appealing modern lines
         • They followed the pre-war Taylor-Walters Report which specified a minimum amount of rooms and space, and restricted building to 12 houses per acre
           • People moved into nice houses with modern appliances and gardens to cultivate
   • Austerity 1945-51
     • Some rationing lasted long after the war. Labour gov had been forced to introduce bread rationing between 1946-48, which was described by the Daily Mail as 'the most hated measure ever to have been presented to the people of this country'
       • Clothes were rationed until "46, along with wood
         • Furniture produced used as little wood as possible, it was called 'utility furniture' and was restricted to newly married couples and pole who had been 'bombed out' during the war
       • Labour had no choice as UK was bankrupt:
         • 55% of British food was imported but we didn't have the foreign currency reserves to pay for all the imports needed
         • The USA ended Britain's wartime financial lifeline in 1945, the Lend-Lease Agreement
     • Raising the standard of living after WW2 was difficult. We were also spending money on feeding parts of Germany that were under British control, keeping men fighting in Greece and re-establishing control In Asian countries.
       • Expensive defence commitments grew in the 50s again with the Korean War, diverting resources away from Civilian consumer economy and into rearmament (defence spending was 23% of GDP in 1950)
     • Winter of 1946-47
       • There was loads of snow
       • Exposed how fragile our economy was, living of standard was significantly effected
         • The gov feared that they would start to run out of food
           • 1/4 of all Britain's sheep were lost, root veg were frozen into the ground and food reserves declined to such an extent that Canadian and Australian citizens posted food parcels to British families
       • The country was paralysed from Dec-March by snow and ice, because there was no coal stores which meant that coal heated homes had to use electric fires which placed strain on national grid
       • Electricity supply to industry and homes were cut by minister for fuel and power, Emmanuel Shinwell, to 19 hours a day
         • Resulted to cold homes, factory closures and unemployment
     • A planned economy
       • Labour thought planned economy would result in raised living standards.
         • In their manifesto they accepted food shortages and other shortages in essential items, saying it was inevitable
       • Conservs campaigned to end rationing, and despite Labour winning the election they had a greatly reduced majority, indicating that they misjudged the public mood
         • When they lost 1951 election in was partially because of this
     • Housing
       • Huge problem with homelessness due to destruction of homes during war. Was dealt by building wooden pre-fabricated homes that could be quickly and cheaply made
       • Pre-fabricated housing
         • In Southeast England, the Excalibur Estate was built between 1945-46
           • Was product of 1944 Housing and Temporary Accommodation Act
             • They were small 2 bedroom bungalows designed to last 10 yrs and they had wooden walls and flat roofs
               • Despite the odd problem people really liked them
                 • 'Airey houses' = made out of pre-cast concrete frames.
                 • There were problems with cold and damp
       • Blocks of flats
         • Easy solution to housing problem in working class areas
           • In 1951 the Lawn Flats were built in Harlow, Essex - first generation of 'point' blocks, were all flats were accessible from a central landing and elevator
             • Given official approval at the Festival of Britain and were seen as attractive
       • New Towns Act, 1946
         • Gov invested in housing in 50s due to bomb damage and also feel of social responsibility
         • This act created 14 new towns + was important
         • Designed to alleviate overcrowded working class districts like London
         • Towns like Stevenage, Telford and Cumbernauld were created, and were designed with modern architecture and they were improvement in living standards for working class people

3. The growth of a consumer society 1951-79

   • This period often referred to as an 'affluent society'
     • In 1957 Harold Macmillan said 'most of our people have never had it so good'
     • Due to global economic boom, Britain's welfare state, relatively low energy prices until early 70s, a commitment by the gov's to full employment, strong trade unions to negotiate high wages for its members, the increasing availability of consumer credit and a rise in the average wages since 1945
   • Consumer spending
     • In 1957 Britain spent just over £1 billion on consumer goods rising to £1.5 billion by 1960, which shows that the popularity of consumer goods increased rapidly in a short period of time
       • Money was spent on labour saving devices e.g. vacuum cleaners, washing machines and fridges.
         • The growth in ownership liberated women from household chores and changed their roles in the home
           • Chores that would normally take a week could be done in a few hours. Advertising was targeted at women
           • In 1955 17% of houses had washing machines but 11 yrs later 60% did
     • Wages in 1959 were 2x more than they were in 1950 = more spending power
     • Consumer credit
       • There was a relaxation of rules surrounding consumer credit in 1954
         • Being able to borrow in order to buy goods increased at a rapid pace in 1955 (the demand for TVs for by 10%)
           • In the interwar years it was seen that 'respectable' people lived within their means and did not borrow
     • Consumer choice
       • The economic shocks of the 70s didn't slow down consumer spending or the expansion of consumer choice
       • Throughout the decade people liked foreign food and drink more, partly as a result of cheaper travel and overseas holidays, and partly because there were more supermarket chains providing low-cost foods and choices
   • New towns
     • New towns were created in the 60s due to the New Towns Act 1964. In 1967 Milton Keynes was made.
       • People could move to these new towns due to affluence. Real wages rose 130% between 55-69. There was hot water, central hating and gardens in these houses and they were attractive to people
   • 'Admass'
     • In 50s +60s there was prosperity for many, but there were also anxieties of this new consumer society
     • The writer J.B. Priestly invented the term 'Admass' to describe the new consumer society of mass consumption and advertising, which in his view encouraged superficiality
       • As brands like Ford and Hoover dominated markets there were fears of 'Amerisanisation' of the British culture
     • A 1953 study of the habits of teenage girls notes' the amazing extent to which the minutiae of the clothes and hair arrangements of an American actress may affect the spending habits of a girl in a mining village in Durham, or a girl in a tenement in central London'
   • Poverty
     • Despite the improvements in living standards for many people, there was still deprivation in some areas.
       • In 1966, the charity housing charity Shelter was founded in order to help 12,000 people nationwide who were homeless and the tens of thousands of people who were living in temporary accommodation
     • People living in poverty were unable to enjoy consumerism, in 1967 it was revealed that7.5 million people lived beneath the poverty line. In 1963 Manchester still had 80,000 slum houses without running water etc.
     • The most vulnerable people 5 million elderly people lived alone, many on small pensions. They had a poor quality of life due to dirty, insanitary living conditions.
       • Their hardships were never talked about in media due to the focus of attracting young people with their disposable income
     • High rise flats
       • Was designed during the 60s. Made to replace terrace housing in inner-city areas.
         • Two architects, Jack Lynn and Ivor Smith, described them as 'streets in the sky'
           • There were faults with thee flats = they suffered from damp, and also there was explosion in Ronan Point flats in London which showed how structurally unsound they were .