“My friends probably see the friendship of the group as a community”: Exploring young people’s experiences of friendship and community in a newly constructed settlement

摘要

This thesis sets out to explore the experiences of young people living in a new\udsettlement in rural Northamptonshire, which was constructed in part under\udNew Labour’s Sustainable Communities Plan. Contextually, this project has been\uddeveloped and carried out at a time of change in the UK. Economic downturn\udeventually led to recession, which slowed development on many new places. A\udchange in UK government from Labour to a Conservative dominated coalition\udin 2010, also impacted on policy surrounding new developments. The young\udpeople who took part in my study were also in a unique position in the history\udof their development with their relationships set against the backdrop of this\udchange but also against the changing and evolving environment in which they\udlived.\udMy research focuses on young people’s intergenerational relationships,\udunderstandings and experiences of community and friendships. Over the\udcourse of approximately a year, I used ethnography and in depth interviews in\udorder to collect data from eighteen young people and seven adults. Building on\udliteratures of children and young people, community, intergenerational\udrelationships and friendship, I make an original contribution to knowledge in\udthe often-overlooked area of young people’s friendship. Exploring friendships\udthrough a wider examination of young people’s intergenerational relationships\udand connections to community, I focus explicitly on how friendships are\udshaped and what they mean to young people living in a new community, for\udexample, the way these friendships were affected by transition, transport and\udlack of other young people living in the immediate locality and also the way\udthat these friendships were developed, maintained and dissolved as a result of\udthese issues. I also examine young people’s relationships to other people\udaround them and to notions of community.