Neighbourhood regeneration through a longitudinal lens: Exploring crisis temporalities in Bristol, UK

This paper employs a longitudinal lens to examine the temporal dimensions of urban neighbourhood regeneration. Specifically, it focuses on four neighbourhoods in Bristol, UK, which were subject to the flagship New Deal for Communities programme from 2000 to 2010. By combining past research into the (then) emerging impact of the NDC with data from more recent enquiries into the daily lives and experiences of residents after the programme's end, the paper considers if and how these neighbourhoods were altered and whether the NDC programme continues to have impact beyond its funding period. The aim is not simply to evaluate the programme's success and legacy, but also to reflect on how past policies interact with present and future temporalities. As such, community perspectives of continuity and change are used as a basis for discussion of the ways in which the urban present is assembled. Within this discussion, the impact of the coronavirus emergency and austerity measures on these neighbourhoods is considered. Both crises underline that regeneration is a dynamic and vulnerable process that does not follow a predetermined or linear trajectory. For this reason, the paper emphasises the need to move beyond singular, snapshot inquiries and instead adopt a longitudinal approach that considers developments beyond the immediate and visible outcomes of urban policy. Short This paper examines the impact of the New Deal for Communities programme on four neighbourhoods in Bristol, UK, using a longitudinal qualitative approach. Building from community perspectives on continuity and change, it examines how this urban regeneration programme altered the neighbourhoods and its lasting effects beyond the funding period. The paper additionally reflects on the impact of the coronavirus emergency and austerity measures on these neighbourhoods. As regeneration is portrayed as a dynamic and vulnerable process that does not follow a predetermined or linear trajectory, the significance of moving beyond singular, snapshot enquiries to comprehensively address this aspect is emphasised.