Fear and Loathing in Ashington: Investigating the impact of deindustrialisation on social capital and its social and political consequences

Abstract

This research explores the effects of deindustrialisation on the levels of social capital and social trust in Ashington, a former mining town in South east Northumberland, and its social and political consequences. It contributes to the growing literature that attempts to explain contemporary political trends through declining levels of social capital and social trust, as well as adding to the existing body of literature on the more general effects of deindustrialisation on community and belonging in post-industrial landscapes. It also feeds into ongoing debates regarding a decline in social capital across western countries more widely. The research uses data from sixteen semi-structured interviews from a range of participants living in Ashington to gain a deeper qualitative understanding of the effects of deindustrialisation on social capital and social trust and how this can be linked to emerging political trends we have seen in deindustrialised communities in recent decades. The study finds a direct link between deindustrialisation and a decline in social capital which has made political organising highly challenging. Reduced social trust and increased levels of crime have in turn contributed to the growing disillusion amongst these communities with our current political system and fed into a rise in right-wing political populism.