Crescunda 19 (hi res)

25 Merchant Taylors’ Prep School Newsletter - 15.11.2019 MTP Geography Cities and Wellbeing I feel lucky to live in a semi-rural place, and I only go to cities for a fun day out or to do an exciting activity or maybe just to enjoy the hustle and bustle that we don’t get here in leafy Hertfordshire. But over the holidays I found an article that was lying on the table in the kitchen, so I decided to read it and incidentally it was about cities and it taught me some things that I had not thought about. I often go into London but do not think about what is good and bad about it. The article said people that live in cities don’t have peace and quiet for all the noise, lights and excitement. Research has shown that this has influenced people’s wellbeing because they have no relaxation time or space for privacy. Also, people in cities are sometimes lonely or have only one person to live with because if you go roaming around Central London you wouldn’t find many houses. There would just be flats which are quite often small. I suppose this means that people go out a lot more than spend time in their homes. My parents also told me that they can be more expensive than living outside London as everything costs more. The article goes on to say that when planning cities, we have to make them so it doesn’t effect people’s wellbeing in a negative way. Solutions for this problem are we could do things like build outdoor gyms in green spaces. This would affect people in a positive manner because they could interact with other people and they could exercise and stay healthy. Green spaces can be relaxing, quiet and peaceful. Being surrounded by trees and not advertising and noise are good for your wellbeing. For existing cities people need to find a way to put things like gyms and greens spaces into their environment. In new cities they should plan and build green spaces and outdoor recreational areas from the start. I never thought of cities in this way and I hope this can be fixed in the near future. I suppose it is up to you, are you a city dweller or country lover or even something in between? Whichever you prefer, it’s nice to see the other side sometimes and enjoy it and understand some of the negatives. I like London a lot, but I like Northwood more because it is quieter and more peaceful. By Arjun Ahuja Over the summer a few boys stepped up to write an article for the MTS Geography magazine, with the central theme of ‘Cities’. Congratulations go to Jack Groves (Y8) who will have his article published in the magazine later this year. I have also included 2 other articles which offer real insight into the urban environments they have experienced; they should also be given high praise for their effort. It is for the next generation to solve the dilemma of keeping cities vibrant whilst ensuring they are still enjoyable to visit and do not have an adverse impact on the areas surrounding them. These 3 boys might be the urbans planners of the future! Mr Bowman Head of Geography MTS Geography Magazine