When Anne Woolford moved into her house in Great Houghton in South Yorkshire in 2000, you could see the black mound of a slag heap from a former colliery from the back window. Today, the heap is covered with grass, and what dominates her view instead is an Asos warehouse that sits atop the former coalmine – a change she says symbolises how employment has evolved locally since the collapse of the industry.
This week, the UK marks the 40th anniversary of the start of the 1984 miners’ strike, when at least 142,000 miners withdrew their labour in attempts to block colliery closures. Despite the historic industrial dispute, the eventual closures changed the face of these areas, with ex-coalfield regions today more likely to be deprived and have less faith in politics.
