During the subsequent quarter century there was vast investment in slum clearance, construction of new houses and apartments, and improvement of services. Urban planning was more widely accepted, together with a broad policy to divert a share of employment and housing to localities beyond London’s continuously built-up area. As a result, the number of residents in Greater London contracted from about 8,193,000 in 1951 to about 6,600,000 in 1991; however, growth continued in other parts of the southeast.