GROWING UP IN THE COUNTRYSIDE | UK | JUNE 2019
Foreigners to the UK, usually think that 99.9% of the UK's population lives in London. That's definitely not the case. In fact, I grew up about an hour and a half from any major city, and about 4-5 hours from London. Growing up in Shropshire (basically the middle of nowhere), where there is probably more sheep residing in the fields than there is people has a lot of pros, and a few cons. There are often perceptions of people that live in the countryside as being extremely wealthy, but that isn't the case at all. There are still lower-economic groups, and of course there is are the extremely wealthy farmers and businessmen.
The peace and quiet of the countryside is obviously one of the advantages, but it can get boring. The only things to do when you're a teenager can be to sit inside and watch TV. I was lucky enough to have friends of the street I live on, so I spent more of my childhood outside and not stuck inside. Getting older I've realised that living in the countryside has limited opportunities for young people. There are limited colleges and qualifications. There are the basic ones, but if you want to do something like A level Engineering or A level Greek, there are limited opportunities.
There are a lot of elderly people in the countryside, a lot of them have lived here all of their lives, or they have decided to move here after retirement. It's obvious why you'd stay here, because its perfect for families, and probably the traditional industries of the 20th century. It is also perfect to commute to the bigger cities or the bigger towns, as it's about 25 minutes from the largest town in the county, and 45 minutes from Chester. However, there is probably a sense of 'disconnectedness' in young people, because there's a lack of people your own age. Obviously, when you hit the age of 18, a lot of your friends are going off to University. The pressure to go to university probably escalates then because you don't want to be left behind. But, also the lack of opportunities can drive people out of the countryside in to the urban areas.
The countryside can be quite claustrophobic in someways. This probably sounds quite paradoxical because you're given all of the space and nature you could want. But the fact that it is ages from anything exciting (sometimes it feels like there's nothing to do), and the public transport links are quite poor. When I didn't drive, I would have to wait for a bus that only came every two hours. The necessity to learn to drive is so important for young people to get around, to jobs, to see friends, and just to be social. If I didn't drive I wouldn't probably be able to work as much as I do, get to University, and I would have to depend on the rubbish public transport (buses) to get me around. I find home claustrophobic in the sense of I feel like I could be doing something so much more important, rather than being stuck in the four walls of my room or the house. Given the political and social climate we live in, living in the countryside can be very isolating in terms of lack of people your age to engage with meaningful conversations about what you're interested in.
The values and norms of older people that make up most of the people in the countryside can be quite frustrating when you don't share the same. The political majority in the county I live in, is very much conservative, which quite obviously is frustrating when you don't share the same ideals. Especially where I live there is a significant lack of racial diversity in the countryside, which obviously doesn't reflect the multiculturalism of Britain. As lovely as it is to live in the country, sometimes the term of 'everyone knows everyone's business' is very accurate, because everyone knows each other. It can get quite annoying, but at the same time there is an increased community spirit in the villages etc.
I've probably rambled on about how annoying living in the countryside is, but I'm extremely lucky to live in such an open, beautiful place. Every place in the world has its pros and cons, and the countryside seems to have quite an isolating feel to it, especially to younger people like me and those who want to more than live in the British countryside where nothing really happens. There's a low crime rate, less pollution, but sometimes you feel you need a change from it.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of where you live?
Happy Reading!
Rose x
The peace and quiet of the countryside is obviously one of the advantages, but it can get boring. The only things to do when you're a teenager can be to sit inside and watch TV. I was lucky enough to have friends of the street I live on, so I spent more of my childhood outside and not stuck inside. Getting older I've realised that living in the countryside has limited opportunities for young people. There are limited colleges and qualifications. There are the basic ones, but if you want to do something like A level Engineering or A level Greek, there are limited opportunities.
There are a lot of elderly people in the countryside, a lot of them have lived here all of their lives, or they have decided to move here after retirement. It's obvious why you'd stay here, because its perfect for families, and probably the traditional industries of the 20th century. It is also perfect to commute to the bigger cities or the bigger towns, as it's about 25 minutes from the largest town in the county, and 45 minutes from Chester. However, there is probably a sense of 'disconnectedness' in young people, because there's a lack of people your own age. Obviously, when you hit the age of 18, a lot of your friends are going off to University. The pressure to go to university probably escalates then because you don't want to be left behind. But, also the lack of opportunities can drive people out of the countryside in to the urban areas.
The countryside can be quite claustrophobic in someways. This probably sounds quite paradoxical because you're given all of the space and nature you could want. But the fact that it is ages from anything exciting (sometimes it feels like there's nothing to do), and the public transport links are quite poor. When I didn't drive, I would have to wait for a bus that only came every two hours. The necessity to learn to drive is so important for young people to get around, to jobs, to see friends, and just to be social. If I didn't drive I wouldn't probably be able to work as much as I do, get to University, and I would have to depend on the rubbish public transport (buses) to get me around. I find home claustrophobic in the sense of I feel like I could be doing something so much more important, rather than being stuck in the four walls of my room or the house. Given the political and social climate we live in, living in the countryside can be very isolating in terms of lack of people your age to engage with meaningful conversations about what you're interested in.
The values and norms of older people that make up most of the people in the countryside can be quite frustrating when you don't share the same. The political majority in the county I live in, is very much conservative, which quite obviously is frustrating when you don't share the same ideals. Especially where I live there is a significant lack of racial diversity in the countryside, which obviously doesn't reflect the multiculturalism of Britain. As lovely as it is to live in the country, sometimes the term of 'everyone knows everyone's business' is very accurate, because everyone knows each other. It can get quite annoying, but at the same time there is an increased community spirit in the villages etc.
I've probably rambled on about how annoying living in the countryside is, but I'm extremely lucky to live in such an open, beautiful place. Every place in the world has its pros and cons, and the countryside seems to have quite an isolating feel to it, especially to younger people like me and those who want to more than live in the British countryside where nothing really happens. There's a low crime rate, less pollution, but sometimes you feel you need a change from it.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of where you live?
Happy Reading!
Rose x
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