1985 Handsworth riots 1500 police officers drafted into the area, about 45 shops looted and burnt, and a trail of damage running into hundreds of thousands of pounds. As well as racial tension, unemployment was seen as a major factor in the riots; by the time of the riots, fewer than 5% of the black population to have left school that summer had found employment. The riots were the first of a series of similar riots across the country during the autumn of 1985, notably the Broadwater Farm riot in London which also resulted in a fatality (the murder of policeman Keith Blakelock).
Broadwater Farm panels as Ronan Point. In June 2018, following tests conducted after the Grenfell Tower fire, Haringey Council announced hundreds of families would have to be evacuated because eleven of the towers are at risk of catastrophic collapse in the event of a fire. At least two may have to be demolished. Broadwater Farm is situated in the valley of the Moselle, approximately six miles (10 km) north of the City of London. It is situated in a deep depression immediately south of Lordship Lane, between the twin junctions of Lordship Lane and The Roundway. It is immediately adjacent to Bruce