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Getting By: Estates, Class and Culture in Austerity Britain

While the 1% rule, poor neighbourhoods have become the subject of public concern and media scorn, blamed for society’s ills. This unique book redresses the balance. Lisa Mckenzie has lived on the St Ann s estate in Nottingham for more than 20 years. Her insider status enables us to hear the stories of its residents, often wary of outsiders. St Ann’s has been stigmatised as a place where gangs, guns, drugs, single mothers, and those unwilling or unable to make something of their lives reside. Yet, in this same community, we find strong, resourceful, ambitious people who are ‘getting by’, often with humour, and despite facing brutal austerity.