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Mick Jones, ex-resident who took the pictures above in 1969:
“I moved on Park Hill in 1961, aged ten-years-old. I thought we’d won the pools. We had underfloor heating, an inside toilet and bath, a fitted kitchen, and an innovative garbage system where you pushed your tin cans down the sink.
It was like a village in a city centre. Many residents who were rehoused from slums were kept together. The amenities were wonderful. We had our own shops with a coffee bar, dentist, hairdresser, school etc. We had three pubs, soon to be four. There was a launderette and a community centre with weekly dances and bingo. We had the famous “Streets in the Sky” where the milkman or breadman could deliver straight to your door. There were a number of porters on the site who looked after maintenance and cleared rubbish too big for the Garchey system. They also chased us off the grass when we were playing football. Life was idyllic. But sadly, by the 80s the council seemed to lose interest and the place became more and more rundown. This led to original families leaving and a downward spiral where only the desperate were housed in the flats.”
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Next: David Watkins, chair of Park Hill Residents’ Association
