Separate lives? : confronting the marginalization of young people in Middle England

Abstract

This thesis considers the way the young people of Middle England Eastleigh are located in narratives of the ‘other’ and defined in opposition to the adult population.  This categorisation is reinforced through their experiences of subordination in many spheres.  Eastleigh, ‘the town that’s too good to be true’, gives off the aura of well-enough-off contentment and presents itself as a good place to live and bring up children.  There is a good community feeling where much is seen to be done for the marginalized, especially its young people.  The Council prides itself with funding provisions for and consulting with young people.  Statutory and voluntary organisations work constantly to provide what they deem is necessary to enable the young to take their (conforming) place within Eastleigh society, so that the good image is perpetuated.

The young people, however, have a different story to tell.  Using the voices of some of those young people this thesis explores the processes whereby young people become subordinated in a community where the portrayal is of cohesiveness.  Central to the study are the programmes designed to divert young people from crime and integrate them into the community.  The young people, who become involved, however, often meet attempts to mould, contain or control them in their formative years in directions they do not seek.

This study found that young people increasingly have to learn to negotiate their way through the ambiguity of their position but that the initiatives provide useful support for some young people some of the time.  The young people of Eastleigh have views and values which seldom fit with those of their elders, who tend to see all young people as non-conforming, and there is constant friction between the two.  An uneasy fermentation continues to highlight areas where all is not as it seems.  There is an intergenerational divide promoting the physical distancing of young people from adults and emphasizing a lack of communication and trust.  The model image by which Eastleigh is portrayed is far from the reality experienced in the lives of its young people.

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