People living in towns feel left behind - they're right

Ethnicity, sexuality and age make us a patchwork nation. Yet too often we forget the power of place. Where we live shapes our lived experience, and one thing we excel at is local differences. Perhaps to truly appreciate the complexity of modern Britain, we need a grassroots, location-based perspective on life.

WPP Media and Mindshare UK’s Shaping The Nation research provides that view. We surveyed 10,000 UK citizens online, interviewed people in their homes, and spoke with regional press, TV and radio editors who know their local area inside out. All to understand the influence that place has on our personal identity.

We found that where you live in the country is just the start. It’s the type of place in which you live that really counts. Cities have more in common with other cities than with the towns and villages in their region. Those who live in towns feel most left behind. This was especially apparent in people’s view of local prospects. Sixty per cent of city dwellers feel positive about their area. Only 40% of people in towns do.

One town-based respondent told us: “We had shops - it was wonderful. Now every next door but one is a takeaway.” Despite our geographic diversity, towns have come to resemble one another

The disparity is even more pronounced in views of the UK. 42% of city-dwellers feel positive about the nation’s prospects. Towns, villages, and coastal areas poll at 20%. In rural and more isolated communities, the rate is only 10%.

The report suggests a shared UK narrative feels as distant as the prospect of economic prosperity. Only 4 in 10 people feel positive about their finances. Only 1 in 7 say they live in their dream location. Inevitably, there are variances. The Northwest is “embracing change” and feeling “future-focused”. The West Midlands is “downbeat” and “looking to the past”. But everyone feels their part of the world has been neglected.

Yet, it’s also true that every place wants more – or better – representation in the media. This is the glimmer of optimism within the report: people want to feel seen. Thankfully, local pride remains strong enough to demand attention.

When we asked where that attention should go, respondents gave us a mix of the expected and the intangible: natural landscapes, local food and drink, local businesses, and their communities’ values. Younger respondents enthused about cultural heritage and shared spaces, each now a powerful anchor of identity. This is especially true within minority ethnic communities.

These untold stories give us hope because community exists everywhere: in Southwold’s independent businesses, in Teesside community news groups, at communal Iftars and in response to rural flooding.

In this vision of the UK, the identity of place is fluid, participatory and full of belonging. Location isn’t just a postcode, it’s a patchwork of connections we make with others, with tradition and with ourselves. We contain multitudes.

So, yes: modern Britain isn’t only one thing. But the same is true of modern Britons.

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James Caig is a Strategy Partner at Mindshare UK, part of WPP Media, who specialises in Government Communications.

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