Modern Britain 1951 - 1964

Modern Britain: Society

Demographic Change from 1951 - 1964

• Birth rates were higher than death rates
  • Medical care had improved post-war.
• There was an increase in migration from the West Indies and parts of the Commonwealth after 1948.
• Outward migration was far higher than inward migration.
  • 1950s - 676,000 (inward) and 1.32 million (outward).
  • 1960s - 1.25 million (inward) and 1.92 million (outward).
• Infrastructure was decaying and was in desperate need for modernisation.
• There was a demand for new housing as a lot had been damaged during the war.
  • 300,000 new houses were built under Churchill's government in the 1950s.
  • New towns such as Crawley and Stevenage were built.
  • Car ownership increased from 3 million to 7 million.
    • People could travel further than their local town or city which resulted in the loss of communities.
• New roads and motorways meant people could move elsewhere and explore the country.
  • A part of the M1 was opened in 1959.
• The Beeching Report in 1963 closed 30% of the rail network which left many rural areas isolated.

Immigration

• Immigration became an issue that created tension.
• By 1958, 210,000 Commonwealth immigrants lived in Britain.
  • Most came from the West Indies.
    • Immigrants from the West Indies found it easier to integrate into society as they were mostly Christian and spoke English.
  • Immigrants from Southern Asia found it harder to integrate as there was a language barrier and most were not Christian.
    • Different religions started to appear in the UK, such as Islam, Hinduism and Sikhism.
• Tension arose in urban areas where immigrants settled.
• Immigrants filled low wage jobs and the authorities generally favoured immigration.
• In 1958, tensions reached boiling point with serious race riots in Notting Hill and Nottingham.
• By 1964, there were 1 million 'coloured' immigrants living in Britain.
• The Commonwealth Immigration Act (1962) aimed to limit immigration through permits.
  • Migrants would be allowed in to Britain according to whether:
  • Migrants had a job prepared.
  • Migrants possessed particular skills, for example, in medicine.
  • Migrants were dependant on people already living in Britain.

Violence and Crime

• Immigrants were often unfairly and inaccurately blamed for crime and violence.
• Number of criminal offences increased to more than double between 1955 and 1965.
• The Kray twins became respectable and fashionable owing to celebrities like Diana Dors.
• Rioting increased in the 1960s between Mods and Rockers.
  • One of the most famous incidents occured at Brighton Beach in 1964.
• A lot of the public, particularly the older generation, could not understand the rise in crime at a time of affulence…