Case Study: Notting Hill & Leicester
Geography: Cambridge International GCSE (2027 Exams), topic 7.3.2
Case Studies: Notting Hill and Leicester
Notting Hill and Leicester are both examples of urban areas which have experienced change.
Portland Road, Notting Hill: History
- Portland Road was built as worker’s terraces in the 1850s.
- In 1929, the street was so badly degraded that is was classified as below working class.
- Each house had at least two families living in it, with a shared toilet, no washing facilities and no hot water.
- Rent was 65p a week per family, which meant that there wasn’t enough money to do repairs to houses.
Notting Hill: gentrification
- Built as worker’s terraces in the 1850s, later overcrowded and run-down.
- By 1929, homes had poor facilities and low rents, with families sharing toilets.
- After rent controls ended in 1957, landlords sold homes to wealthier buyers.
- Background: London’s growing population and housing crisis increased demand.
- Portobello Market and the area’s central location attracted middle-class buyers.
- Today, houses sell for millions, showing extreme gentrification.
Leicester: changes in retail activity 1
- Leicester is an old market town that has had food markets every day for the last 700 years.
- In the 1960s this changed to every week because of competition from supermarkets.
- A CBD shopping centre called Haymarket was built on the old market place in 1971.
Leicester: changing retail
- In 1989, Fosse Park opened as an out-of-town shopping centre with good road links and plenty of parking.
- Customers preferred Fosse Park because the CBD had limited parking, heavy traffic, and pedestrianised streets.
- In 1992, the city centre responded with the new Shires shopping centre.
- In 2008, Highcross Mall was added, providing shops, restaurants, and a cinema to revive the CBD.
Test yourself on Case Study: Notting Hill & Leicester
Which out of town shopping centre did Leicester lose many of its customers to?