SHEFFIELD PARK HILL ESTATE (c.1957) film no: 3238

This film shows the post-war slum area of Park Hill in Sheffield before it was demolished to make way for the modern Park Hill estate.

The film opens showing the slum area.  There are many terraced streets where tiny houses are set out row upon row.  Surrounding streets, shops and trams are shown before there are views of a nicer residential area.  A large church and its grounds can be seen before the camera moves inside the church to show the alter and stained glass windows.

Returning to the slums, the bombed out areas from the blitz can be seen including houses which are half blown to bits resulting in rubble everywhere.  Around them, the remaining houses that stand are still inhabited.  Some women stand by their back doors whilst a small boy plays in the rubble.  They have no gardens, just a dirt area with no dividing fences.  The washing is hung out on makeshift lines between the houses.

The interiors of the houses are dark and dingy.  A woman is in a small kitchen doing her washing before putting it through a mangle.  More exterior shots show children playing in the rubble, and small alleyways and the rows of terraces are seen.  In a clearing in this area of town, some men are building a prefabricated house.  Children come out of the local school building and go home to the nearby terraces.  The film closes with extensive views of the area that show row upon row of slums which are tightly packed together and unhygienic.  In another one of the houses, three young men work as blacksmiths, some working near the fire and another man buffing the metal.  There are further shots of the surrounding area, and men begin to demolish one of the houses.  The two men on the roof take off shingles before workmen use a digger to start and clear the area.

The following streets appear in this film:  Shewsbury Road, Duke Street, Talbot Street, Norfolk Road, Duke Street Lane, Gilbert Street, Hague Lane, Stafford Street, and Rhodes Street.