Trailer

Before watching the film, re-cap on why a number of new towns were planned around Glasgow in the 1950s. Ask students to think about what they might expect from Cumbernauld: where do they think it will have been built? Who do they think will move there? What layout/architecture might they expect? How might the transport be organised?

As they watch the extract, students should note down as many details about the town as they can, ready to feed back into a class discussion.

Unsurpisingly, Cumbernauld, Town for Tomorrow (1970) offers an incredibly positive slant on the creation of new towns and the community spirit they foster. Before moving on, challenge students to explain the purpose of the film. Why did the Cumbernauld Development Corporation sponsor it and what did they want to achieve?

For another example of a promotional 'new town' film, try New Day (1959) listed under See Also on the right.

Main Attraction

It's time to think about Cumbernauld today. How has this new town developed? Ask students to imagine that they have been asked to write feature article for a Scottish daily newspaper on life in Cumbernauld from the point of view of its residents.

Challenge students to work in small groups to come up with a well-researched pitch to the paper's editor, in which they outline the basic structure and content of their proposed piece. The links below offer a good starting point for basic research into different aspects of Cumbernauld today. Each pitch needs to include:

• What the group has learnt about Cumbernauld from research.
• A description of who will be interviewed and why (what different individuals and groups in society would groups like to hear from?).
• List of key questions the article will answer.
• List of broad themes the article will address - for example: industrial/commercial investment in the town/leisure/healthcare/community life/transport etc.

Each group should prepare a short presentation for the rest of their class, in which they pitch their idea and explain their reasoning.

End Credits

Since WWII more than 30 new towns have been built around Britain, providing new homes for more than 1.3 million people. Recent government studies have suggested that up to 4 million new homes might be needed by 2020. End the lesson by thinking about new towns in general:

• Why are new towns built?
• Where are they built?
• What are the key characteristics of new towns?
• What are the advantages of new towns and what kinds of problems have they caused?
• How have the needs of the community changed since 1970 and in what ways might these be reflected in a new town today?