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GLEADLESS: Sad decline of 'happy valley'
IT was dubbed 'Happy Valley' when its first "bubbling, enthusiastic" residents moved in.
A newspaper cutting about Gleadless Valley from the Sheffield Telegraph in 1957 states: "There is no mistaking the family atmosphere. Where the most familiar sound, above the cries of the youngsters, is the 'chuff' of spade into soil as rough plots are moulded into neat gardens; the residents will proudly show the visitor round their new homes."
Work on the 5,000 houses that make up the estate began in 1955 and people moving into the area from old, sooty terraces with poky yards, were thrilled with the fitted cupboards and central heating.
The bathrooms were said to be a "luxury" that 80 per cent had never known before and which all would agree was "worth an extra 10 shillings a week in rent alone".
The main concerns were not enough schools and the lack of a library and community centre.
And some older residents complained of "cheeky" youngsters.
Two decades later anti-social behaviour was a growing problem.
In one incident an 81-year-old deaf and partially-sighted woman had to fight her way out of her burning flat in Raeburn Place after hooligans pushed lit newspaper through her letterbox.
In recent years problems have escalated and last October, area councillor Terry Fox demanded "zero tolerance" on yobs.
READ MORE OF OUR SPECIAL REPORT ON GLEADLESS VALLEY:Is this Sheffield's worst estate?
'Living in a ghetto' where even the bins have to be locked
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Friday 10 February 2012
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