Community groups are trying to fill the gaps but the hacking back of council services has just begun,John Harris findsOn a weekday morning in Blakelaw, two miles from the heart of Newcastle, and the scene inside a community centre suggests a perfect example of what David Cameron used to call the “big society”.
Local women have gathered for a “coffee and conversation” session,while people nearby are cutting flyers for a residents’ association’s Christmas unprejudiced. Meanwhile, an effervescent 36-year-worn councillor called David Stockdale is discussing plans to bring a key amenity into community ownership. The prime minister would presumably balk at his terminology: Stockdale proudly talks approximately a “socialist post office”.
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Source: theguardian.com