I live in the small market town of Dereham, Norfolk. Dereham labels itself ‘The heart of Norfolk’, due to it’s central location within Norfolk, the exact epicentre, is the Tesco car park, on the outskirts of town.

Once, Dereham was the hub of local industry, a large clock makers, a giant trailer factory and a furniture factory employed many of those living within the town. In the early 1980’s all of these large industries began to close or move away.

Recent years have seen corporations move in, primarily to the outskirts of town, brands replacing generations of family run businesses, just this year several shops have blinked from existence, some dating back 100 years.

From the inside, watching a once thriving market town become a ghost town, is alarming. The slow erosion from what once was to what will be, is alarming. What remains, though, is the endurance of it’s people. People born here, people from all over the country that have settled, people from all over our planet, that have settled here, and stay, and survive.

In coming months, I’ll be documenting and sharing many of these lives, and the location itself, as all continue their journey.

Very best,
J A Mortram