The Council Estate as Hood: SPID Theatre Company and Grass-roots Arts Practice as Cultural Politics

In 2011, in the aftermath of the riots that took place in many of Britain’s major cities, cabinet member for housing Jonathan Glanz released a statement:

Social housing isn’t a right, it’s a privilege and if people abuse that privilege then in common with anyone else they should face the consequences [...]. We have a responsibility to our communities at large. Many people living in these communities are playing by the rules and were not involved in criminal activity over the last few nights. They wouldn’t want to live next door to people who are getting away with bad behaviour and enjoying the privilege. (McCann 2011)