St Helens is my hometown; it was known for coal mining and glass manufacturing. In 1982/83 when I photographed the town, only two of its coal mines remained in operation, both on their way to closure; and Pilkington, the largest of the glass manufacturers – and a name still synonymous with the town – had halved its local workforce in the face of recession and global competition. The fabric of the town’s nineteenth century housing and its shopping centre – modernised in the late 1960s and early ‘70s – was typical to 1980s northern Britain. Slum clearance programmes left sections of red brick terraces propped up on wastelands of rubble to co-exist with new housing and concrete commercial precincts.

The photographs in this Café Royal Book were taken at the beginning of my training as an artist. This initial exploration of place through photography laid the foundations for my ongoing photographic practice. The introduction to CRB St Helens was written by Julia García Hernández.

Published by Café Royal Books.  
Edited by Craig Atkinson.  
First Published 2016.  
Edition of 150.