Stevenage Town - The Early Years - Stevenage 75th anniversary magazine | biz4Biz - Magazine - Page 10
Stevenage Town - The Early Years
History
Construction workers building one of
the first roads in the new town
Stevenage New Town:
The Early Years
OVERVIEW
Stevenage has reached another milestone
in its distinctive journey. As the very
first of the British state-sponsored New
Towns to be designated immediately
after the second world war of 1939 to
1945, Stevenage achieved national and
international fame. It may have been the
first new town to be named officially, but
it was nearly still born, and started life
slowly and uncertainly before shooting
towards its target size of 60,000 in the
1950s and 1960s. As an established
community of approaching 100,000 and
with a substantial catchment area for
its many services and facilities across
10
northern and eastern Hertfordshire, now
is a good time to look back. The new
town programme of various Labour and
Conservative Governments was scaled
back drastically in 1976, effectively
bookended by Stevenage in the beginning
and Milton Keynes some twenty years
or so later. New towns have always had
their supporters and detractors. Perhaps
what matters most is that those who
actually lived in Stevenage and other
new towns liked living there. Moving
to Stevenage took some courage, and
reflected the aspirations of the pioneer
residents, their children, and today their
grandchildren. The new town gave many
w w w. b i z 4 b i z . o r g
people opportunities to get on and make
a better life for themselves that would not
have been possible if they had stayed in
London.