Across the East of England, 160,000 householders are currently on waiting lists for affordable housing - the vast majority of whom are currently living in unaffordable & unsustainable housing, costing their Local Authorities £Millions in Housing Benefits & Council Tax 'Top-Ups'.
North Norfolk 'black-spots' (like 'well-heeled' Holt & North Walsham as reported by Archant Journalist Donna-Louise Bishop in January 2012), appear as tips of the iceberg of child poverty - because of the numbers of children living in the towns.
4,000,000 children in the UK now live in poverty - that's one in three children! (Reference: www.endchildpoverty.org.uk) - And according to various online sources - the combined total for child poverty across the world map now stands in the region of between 852 Million & one Billion!
Effectively, 'poverty' is fast becoming the economical suicide of our Species - as 22,000 children die each single day around the world, as the direct result of poverty - and our lack of ability to be able to live sustainably in 'the West'.
While some people might look to the Government for 'an' humanitarian solution to the problem - others don't, (especially a lot of entrepreneurs in rural Norfolk).
Entrepreneurs (Social, Serial &/or 'Lifestyle' Entrepreneurs) - think 'differently'.
In fact, when it comes to the rural county of Norfolk it appears from social history that we've always have a strong core of individuals who actually take on the ruling classes & challenge their decision/s.
In the 1540's there was an agricultural crisis - leading to a national revolt in 1549, in which Norfolk hosted 'The Ketts Rebellion' as started by revolutionaries in Wymondham.
Sadly, the revolt against the enclosure of common lands was lost - not only in Norfolk, (where both Robert & his brother William were hung as 'traitors', after standing up for the 'Human Rights' of their fellow-men) - but across the whole of England.
Had the revolt been successful - undoubtedly, there wouldn't be so many children in the UK living in abject poverty right now - nor so many householders on waiting lists for affordable & rural housing.
Since the 12th Century, the UK Parliament issued sporadic Enclosure Acts to enclose open fields and common land - with the bulk of Government Acts issued between 1750 & 1860*.
According to Wikipedia; "Under this process there were over 5,000 individual Inclosure Acts and 21% of land in England was enclosed, amounting to nearly 11,000 square miles (28,000 km2)."
(And even before that, for about 600 years before the 'Land Inclosures/Enclosures Act's - huge amounts of land had been 'inherited' by the church, from the witches they cited and burnt at the stake, the vast majority of whom were women, and many of whom had just been bequeathed their land through the death of family or partners.)
In fact, in terms of 'women's rights' - it's taken 2000 years to regain the equality which was 'stolen' by the Romans & the Catholic church at the time of Queen Boudicca (of the Iceni Tribe, again of the East of England) - and even now, "WE" (women in the UK), only receive £0.75 of the £1 to equivalent male wages. (Reference an article in the GUARDIAN' newspaper, written by Kathy Lette & Jenni Murray, Monday 5 March 2012, entitled 'On International Women's Day - what should we be fighting for?)
According to one entrepreneur & single mum of three (herself 'imprisoned in rural poverty' in a tiny village in the North Norfolk region), the answer to that question is:- "Justice". (Devine or 'Political' - she doesn't care which!)
The moment the UK Government adopted 'Agenda 21' - which was presented at the United Nations Conference, (held in Rio de Janerio on the 13th June, 1992), the architectural design & construction industry - were supposed to start working towards a far more sustainable & ethical future for the 21st Century.
Some did... (In fact - some were even party to years of campaigning for the non-profit organisations & as Friends of the Earth, [FoE], for all the decades it took for these actual changes to become mainstream policy in the first place!)
(According to Wikipedia), the period we consider to be the Industrial Revolution are virtually the same as the Government's main issue of Land Enclosures Acts, *from 1750 to 1850.
Effectively it appears that the mass of land which constitutes as 'the United Kingdom' - was essentially stolen from under the organic feet of the indigenous people/s, and used to ensure the prolific wealth of the few individuals within the 'ruling' or 'upper' classes.
In this manner, the whole of the 'British Empire' stretched across oceans - as land was stolen in the same manner from under the organic feet of indigenous people/s from around the entire world, into what (humorously) became known as the 'British CommonWealth'.
Far from being of 'common' wealth at all - what the 'Romanesque' empirical forces gained through the gathering of land from others - was the continued wealth of the ruling classes who issued the instructions to their forces.
Although much of these countries have now (finally) regained their own value of 'Independence' - the United Kingdom itself continues to be dominated by the ruling classes, with little thought to the 'common' (wealth) of the rural 'peasants' & indigenous tribes whose land gave them their seat in the first place.
According to Historian Steve Parish - a renowned authority on the Iceni Tribe of East Anglia, back in Boudicca's day - women were seen as completely equal to men, and enjoyed equal Human Rights to inherit property. (In fact, Steve went so far as to say that women were actually revered by men back then!)
So much for 'the civilised world' - and it's capacity to only pay women 75p in the £1.00 employed equally to men!
In fact, when you think about it, the 'Scales of Justice' ARE held by 'Lady Justice' (in Latin, known as 'Justitia') - which is ironic really, when for practically 2000 years women's right's have tipped the scales at zero 'HUman Rights' to men's 100% capacity!
When the current coalition government first took their seats after winning the last election, it was noted that the MP's response to a BBC interviewer who asked when women might now receive equal pay - was a quick laugh, an 'oh yes' (as if in saying "oh yes, that OLD chestnut") - and the answer of the aim being the year 2063!!
Why wait until 2063 - why not pay women equal rates to men right now? (Especially as only 35% of all single parents in the UK get ANY maintenance from ANY absent parent. Reference Professor S McKay, the University of Birmingham.)
'The Joke' is that Agenda 21 constitutes a highly comprehensive 'BluePrint' for these inclusions - yet to date, successive UK Governments have done little to implement any.
Government's running on four-year turnover's are highly unlikely to be able to view 'the bigger picture' - as 'we' see it! (Especially when blinded by their expenses claims for 'Moat Cleaning' or building 'Duck Houses'.)
Can you imagine it - there you are, living imprisoned in poverty in rural Norfolk without a leg to stand on any affordable 'bit of' Earth, as there's NO affordable housing - or even a spit of land available to you, as you watch the news and hear reports of Politicians fiddling their expenses claims - so even the ducks get 'affordable housing', but you can't.
(And to add insult to injury - the Politicians which write all the rules which govern you - are able to re-write them to suit themselves, and get away with 'stealing' out of our 'CommonWealth'.)
Add to that fact, the fact that the likes of 'the right honourable' Eric Pickles, Grant Shapps, & many other (male) MPs, have decided that UK Planning Guidelines - based upon United Nations Agenda 21 - are 'too vague' to follow for sustainable communities, and 'we' all end up in a right 'pickle' ourselves too.
(Especially those of us who have spent years, trying to follow Agenda 21, 'The Earth Charter', The Brundtland Report, The Reap Report, and United Nations charters for Human Rights issued in the 1950s - for our profession as architectural designers.)
If the Planning Guidelines are 'too vague' for politicians to follow - they should leave it to the professionals, (+ the amateurs - and also, the 'Social Entrepreneurs').
As we sit here today - watching Banking 'bosses' get their £Millions of bonuses paid, after running their businesses so badly they instigated a global economic recession, (and the boss of one of the least ethical banks in the entire world - have his personal income taxes get paid by his own bank), we could almost 'gloat' in satisfaction, knowing that he (at least) should burn for eternity in the hell of his own making.
Unfortunately, knowing that our own children will go on to inherit the world tomorrow - which all the politicians have completely decimated today, allows only cold comfort.
(And as children in mainstream education at Fakenham High School in North Norfolk are already taught about sustainability - and now know that methane is 23 times worse than CO2, it appears that they're now in a position to teach the politicians!)
Given the fact that Agenda 21 specifically incorporated the need to protect the rights of all Indigenous Peoples, single heads of household, excluded groups, 'Travellers'/Gypsies, single youths & adults, children, & ex-offenders - it's impossible to ask why even those organised as 'social enterprises' (& 'Housing Associations' such as that of 'Dale Farm Community'), are still being pushed off their land - and forced into a situation of homelessness.
(Norfolk Council/s fair little better either when it comes to the general rules of 'democracy'.)
Witness: (1): Proposed Incinerator, King's Lynn. Democratic Vote of the community of King's Lynn = 93% AGAINST. Current situation - Norfolk County Council avoided the court hearing on the proposals, and the contractor has been assigned to the build of the proposed project. (2): Proposed Tesco's, Sheringham. Democratic Vote of Sheringham Community = 53% AGAINST. Current situation - North Norfolk District Council approved Tesco's planning proposals - OVER those of North Norfolk BusinessMan Clive Hay-Smith, who had the majority vote of the same NNDC community for a proposed 'Eco' Centre.
N.B. Please also see a report written by Lucy Clapman, which was published in the Eastern Daily Press on the 18th February 2012, entitled "North Norfolk District Council warned it cannot afford controversial Dudgeon windfarm cable appeal", which opens with "opens with the words: "Campaigners fear for the future of local democracy...": www.edp24.co.uk/news/north_norfolk_district_council_warned_it_cannot_afford_controversial_dudgeon_windfarm_cable_appeal_1_1213255
(As a female since I was born in the late 1950s - and an environmentalist since I went to Heacham Junior School in West Norfolk in the 1960s - I'd say to Lucy Clapman of her sentiment "not half"!!)
