It's a sign of old age, I am told, when you start thinking back on how your local area has changed over the years, especially from what you remember it being like as a child. You don't have to name the area our street names. If you wish, be vague about names, etc, especially if you still live in or around the same area and wish to remain anonymous.

I thought about starting this two weeks ago, after I overheard a conversation between a mother around 50 to 60 and her daughter, who I would say was in her late 20s.

My earliest memory of the area is from back when my parents lived down a cul-de-sac. I remember the majority of neighbours being friendly enough, and my brother and I would usually play in the front garden, usually with his Ghostbuster backpack water pistol, with which I tended to spray some of the neighbours for fun.

I remember visiting the doctor, and how my grandfather would drive us there and back. On occasion, Granny Pie (my mum) would walk to various nearby shops, and even at the age of, say, 7, I knew the majority of the shops very well.

After my parents bought their home together, I lived 5 minutes from a row of shops. It used to start with a church of some form, a chemist, an optician's a cob/cake shop, an old DIY store, a large convenience store, and another that was owned by a husband and wife. I don't really remember her very well; she could be nice but tended to complain a lot about the customers. His name was Reg; again, he was mostly fine.

In the front of their shop, they used to have all sorts of toys on display for sale, and as a child, I liked window-shopping. Saving up for something tends to be good fun.

By the side of Reg's shop, there was a PVC door which looked like it would take you to an apartment but was actually the local hairdresser's. That's where I would have my hair cut until I was about 14 years old; she sold the space and moved away to retire. Long-standing members might recall a story where she shaved all of my hair off.

Granny Pie wasn't happy, and I actually took the blame for that even though I said my usual, which "wasn't a skinhead." 😂

Down the road there was a newspaper shop; I used to cycle my bike there at times to check if they had certain sticker packs in stock, when Reg would only order a box once a month.

Further down was a larger row of shops. Starting at the very end, I recall a very small frozen food ship, which is now a "bring-your-own-wine" restaurant. To be fair, it has been for most of my life. Across the road there was another hairdresser's where I remember the women pulling at my hair when I was very, very young and making me so irritated that I wouldn't keep still.

Next to it, there's a post office that is still there. Across the road was a single newsagent, which stocked every drink imaginable, and the owner was a great guy. Unfortunately, he had a heart attack while I was working at a nearby care home. There were times he would let me get a drink even without paying if I had no money, not that I liked it, but he remembered me from my childhood and would offer very often as I walked back home.

My memory is a little patchy regarding some of the shops across the road again, but I do remember a card shop which had all sorts of items. Pic'n Mix, party supplies, you name it, they probably had it.

Then there was a Co-op, one of the smallest, and I never really liked it until I was a teen. Actually, before this, there's a chippy that is still there but obviously has different owners. It used to be my Grandfather Ray's favorite. I haven't been in there for years. Last time I was fetching some chips for Granny Pie, and Super was being awkward about us buying him some. 🥱

Next, there was a cake shop, which also sold cobs and freshly cut meat. It was very sad when it closed, as I had a lot of fond memories of going in, not just for a cake but because the staff were always super nice. Luckily, one of the staff members, who often spoke about wanting to train as a teacher, did manage to meet my son before it closed down. Jake would have only been a baby, and by that point it didn't sell much but cobs and cakes.

A little further up, there used to be a butcher's I only recall going in there a few times with Super; I never really liked the smell. Even now, it makes me feel like going off meat. After that, there was a shoe shop, and again my earliest memory of going in was convincing my mum to buy me a Micro Machines racing car.

It's run by a father and son team; I really hope the father is still alive. A few years ago, he was there, as I went there on purpose to get new keys cut. I also went to look for a belt for Super, but they sold shoes, bags, slippers, etc. Next to him, there's a barber's owned by a guy called Gaz. I used to get my hair cut by him until I was 17; I stopped going to him, but he was always very friendly.

Thinking back, what is now an Asian store selling fresh fruit. There used to be a really cool shop that sold toys and things; I remember getting birthday presents from there back in the day.

Much has changed; a lot for the worse. Numerous takeaway shops have emerged, yet most of them are quite mediocre.

What used to be a larger Co-Op nearby is a local ASDA from hell.

I think the area has massively declined; some things have improved, such as walking around, you don't stumble into so many ***kheads. You just end up living near them instead. Provided you stay to yourself, it's not an issue, but I wish my children could have grown up making more use of our garden.

I used to spend a lot of time in my parents garden, playing football and other sports. Spinning myself around, hassling Super to let him allow me to help him tidy the garden. Buying Granny flowers for the front garden, not just for Mother's Day.

I don’t live in the area I was brought in now, when I married I moved out of Nottingham to one of the outlying towns, the houses were cheaper to buy.

The area I grew up was a small community of around 5 or 6 streets off a main road. Our street had a small sweet shop run by an old lady who lived in the back, when you went in the shop a bell would ding on the door and she come through from whatever she was doing in the back. There were jars of sweets all round on shelves and she would weigh out 2 oz of your favourite sweets into a little triangular paper bag.

On the main road was a chip shop which again was run by a man and wife who lived on the premises. Further along was a coop supermarket, my mum used to go and choose her shopping and a boy would deliver it on a bike with a basket on the front.

There was a greengrocers which sold fresh fruit and veg including the most delicious peas in pods when they were in season, I used to love shelling the peas into a basin and pinching the odd one now and then, they were lovely and sweet.

There was a shoe shop not far away where my mum bought our shoes and paid so much a week.

@Chris off topic but when you mentioned micro machines it reminded me our late son used to collect them as a child, they are still in the loft, we were wanting to give them to his son (our grandson) but sadly we don’t see him now and have very little contact.

Where I grew up, it was mostly houses and not much has changed. The biggest difference is how many trees have been cut down, and how gardens have turned into slabs and concrete. People have replaced hedges with fences. The nearest corner shop was about 15 minutes away, and that’s still the case. There aren’t any local amenities nearby unless you drive out. I think I’ve seen more change in Manchester over the years than I ever did where I grew up.

3 hours ago, Fan of Big Tone said:

@Chris off topic but when you mentioned micro machines it reminded me our late son used to collect them as a child, they are still in the loft, we were wanting to give them to his son (our grandson) but sadly we don’t see him now and have very little contact.

What about one of your other grandchildren?

I know the sentiment about passing things down in line, but your son will be living on with his siblings children. Repurposing items like jewelry or ornaments can be quite challenging. I hope you can find somewhere within your family, that they can be passed down too.

I don't live in the same area as I did when I was in my childhood. Areas can be different in their own ways but there is a constant that seems to be missing between neighbourhoods of 60 years ago & now.

As a boy I was brought up on pit estates where the tenants would be exclusively NCB employees. They were special neighbourhoods where everyone would know everyone else on the streets where we lived.

When I was very young, before my Mum started work, the back door always seems to be open. A neighbour would knock on the door for a chinwag & the kettle would go on the stove for the proverbial cup of tea with a biscuit to go with it.

My Mum would visit a neighbour in the same way too. This is something you never see nowadays. The sense of community just doesn't seem the same in this day and age. The back door is securely locked & I think that is the sign of the times no matter what neighbourhood you live in.

When I last visited the street I lived on from the age of 10 ,in Alfreton where I was brought up ,the thing that I noticed immediately was the number of cars. parked there. I used to walk that street to and from school and then there was probably a couple of vehicles parked at the most.Now there were cars parked on both sides of the road for the entire length.It must be a nightmare now for the school bus drivers delivering or collecting pupils every morning and late afternoon.

The main changes I've noticed in the area I've resided in for the last 40 plus years isn't so much the shops(which @Chris has already described) but the number of foreign residents here now.I walked to the local shops last week and realised how multiracial the area has now become.