London photographer Kit Oates has documented the different and changing generations that grew up on a North London housing estate undergoing regeneration by the government. Kit took portraits of the locals in the diverse community, and put them up on buildings the council plans to demolish.
“I wanted to capture the strong sense of community in the local area, as well as the diverse range of people. There is an assumption that housing estates don’t have a community, and it’s simply not the case. Everyone I photographed had a strong connection to the local area. Many worked in the local area in childcare, community kitchens and we’re well known faces on the estate.”
It’s a really diverse area, In a single day I was meeting Jamaican OAP’s, Somali teenagers and Eastern European builders. It’s one of the poorest estates in the UK, yet the people that live here are fantastic and very kind people.
The residents find the constant construction a bit disruptive, but it’s something they have had to get used to. The process is long, and family and friends find themselves separated in the rehousing scheme.”
- Kit Oates
