Regional & National Influences on Place Characteristics
- Regional and national influences shape the demographic and cultural characteristics of places, both through past and present connections
- Transport connections
- Larger settlements often have multiple transport routes e.g. motorways, rail
- Liverpool, located in North-west England, has significant road, rail and ferry networks
- Larger settlements often have multiple transport routes e.g. motorways, rail
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Transport infrastructure of Liverpool
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- Smaller or more peripheral settlements often have fewer major road and rail connections
- Lerwick, located in Shetland, is relatively isolated as it has no rail service or motorways
- The transport infrastructure consists of a road network, a ferry terminal, bus routes and an airport
- Smaller or more peripheral settlements often have fewer major road and rail connections
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Transport infrastructure of Lerwick
- Physical characteristics
- The surrounding landscape can shape the character of a place
- Coastal settlements can form trade connections with other coastal settlements e.g. Liverpool’s location on the River Mersey allowed easy trade with and access from Ireland
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- This contributed to a history of Irish migration to Liverpool, widening its cultural diversity
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- Physically isolated places, such as Lerwick, experience less trade and immigration, which can limit cultural diversity
- Industrial development
- Places can have strong historical associations with certain industries e.g.
- Fishing has been the main industry in Lerwick, since the 17th century
- Liverpool was an important hub for textile imports during the Industrial Revolution
- Places can have strong historical associations with certain industries e.g.
- National policies
- Different migration policies may impact the demographics
- For example, the Windrush Generation - immigrants arriving from the Caribbean (as well as other Commonwealth countries) to fill labour shortages after World War II, around 15% settled in Liverpool
- The Northern Powerhouse Initiative is a scheme designed to boost economic growth and productivity in northern cities through improved transport links, and investment in science, innovation and culture
- The government awarded a £35 million grant to the Liverpool2 port programme to enable larger container ships to dock at Liverpool
- Different migration policies may impact the demographics
Exam Tip
The Specification expects you to study two places to examine the past and present connections that have shaped their demographic and cultural characteristics. You should have first-hand experience of one place and the other place should be significantly different.
Here are some enquiry questions and data sources you could use to examine the regional and national connections which have shaped the demographic and cultural characteristics of your chosen places.
Scale | Enquiry questions | Data sources |
Regional |
How well are the places connected in terms of the transport infrastructure? Are there major settlements nearby and how do they impact the places? What are the local authority’s policies on development? What are the political motivations of the local councils? How strong is the sense of community? What are the pressures for change regionally? |
OS maps / public transport timetables Consider commuting, accessing services and leisure Local authority and regional enterprise zone websites Last local election results / Social media Local newspapers / social media Local newspapers / social media |
National |
What are the political motivations of the national government? What are the pressures for change nationally and how does it affect the place? How do the places compare with national averages of wealth and deprivation? How accessible are the places to important economic hubs? |
Last general election results Newspapers / social media Look at the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) results |
Impact on people
- All places have a perceived image, which shapes people’s view of the place as either positive or negative
- Liverpool could be perceived as a modern, busy place, where there is lots to do
- Lerwick could be perceived as being very remote (12-hour ferry trip from Aberdeen) with few services
- These images and perceptions can affect the lives of students and other groups of people:
- Students might not want to study at a university due to their perception of the place
- Young people may feel they want to leave a place with a less positive image
- Places with more positive images tend to attract more people (internal and international migration)
- There are likely to be more job opportunities in places with positive images as companies are also attracted to them
- Continuity (things staying the same) and change affect people in different ways
- Deindustrialisation can have a number of impacts including:
- Higher levels of unemployment
- The connection between people (who worked in the industry) and local industries can remain strong even after the industry has disappeared e.g. the steel industry in Middlesbrough
- If the abandoned buildings remain, with no development, young people and migrants often perceive the area as run-down with fewer economic opportunities
- Development of the area may attract migrants, with a wider set of skills, in search of employment opportunities
- Older workers with the original, older industrial skill set may resent the new forms of industry and the migrants
- Migration
- With new economic development, places can attract a younger and more ethnically diverse population
- Some people may welcome this diversity and learn more about the different cultures
- Other people may not like the change in the demographics of the local area and oppose immigration
- As urban centres become more crowded, wealthier people move out of these areas
- Inner city regeneration
- Between the 1960s and the 1980s, the UK authorities demolished terraced housing, replacing them with high-rise flats to cope with the increased demand for housing
- Many people felt more isolated from one another in these tower blocks, which reduced the sense of community
- During the 1990s, new developments replaced the tower blocks, some of which were experiencing structural decay due to the rushed construction
- Inner city areas are undergoing regeneration (funded by the UK government) to create sustainable developments combining housing, leisure and business and improve community spirit
- Improving broadband and mobile infrastructure
- The rollout of a more efficient broadband and mobile infrastructure has enabled more businesses to operate from rural areas
- It has also encouraged more young people to stay in villages
- It allows people to work from home and reduces the need to commute to urban centres
- Diversification
- Some farmers choose to diversify their farmland e.g.
- Generating renewable energy (solar farms)
- Building new holiday accommodation for tourists
- Offering leisure pursuits (alpaca trekking, quad biking)
- This has created new employment opportunities in rural areas, especially for younger people
- Rural places experiencing this diversification will attract more young people
- Some farmers choose to diversify their farmland e.g.
- Growth of commuter villages
- As rural villages grow due to counter-urbanisation, they begin to lose their rural character e.g. increased housing density
- Urban incomers may retain their urban focus, spending a lot of their time and money in the city
- Some long-term residents of these rural villages may resent these changes and the new arrivals