Leading by examples – retrofitting all types of social housing – part two

Posted on May 24, 2023 by jamescarson2014

By Ian Babelon

In the first part of two blog posts, published on 22 May, Ian Babelon provided examples of good practice in retrofitting social housing. The second part of this blog post looks at estate-wide and area-wide social housing retrofits.

Introduction

Upscaling social housing retrofits requires learning from individual property retrofits and wider retrofitting programmes. With numbers comes greater complexity. As capacity grows, opportunities for partnerships provide new opportunities to embed retrofit programmes in wider sectoral and place-based strategies. This post considers the role of estate-wide and area-wide social housing retrofits, including how these can benefit from tenant engagement for healthy, inclusive placemaking.

Estate-wide retrofits

Low-carbon retrofitting measures on Lancaster West Estate at the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea have included Energiesprong whole house retrofits at 38 homes, energy-efficiency measures at 367 homes across seven blocks, and testing mechanical ventilation heat recovery systems. The latest measure is the fully carbon-neutral retrofit at Treadgold House. Other measures have included public realm and safety improvements. Along with the extensive resident engagement, the estate has witnessed a deep one-of-a-kind transformation.

However, estate-wide retrofits can be difficult to plan and deliver to a high energy-efficiency standard due to the large up-front costs involved. A mix of whole-house retrofits, fabric-first approaches, redevelopment of poorly designed buildings, and essential scheduled upgrades might be preferable, depending on the context and the heavy cost of building safety compliance.

The acclaimed Passivhaus redevelopment of Agar Grove in Camden, based on the masterplan by Hawkins\Brown, features a mix of solutions that make the estate-wide regeneration more affordable for both the council and residents. These include new council homes, refurbished flats, affordable rental housing, and homes for sale, enabling a tall order of 496 new homes to be delivered in six phases. Besides providing much-needed quality homes to many, the project also acts an exemplar for social and affordable housing in the UK and beyond.

Area-wide programmes

From being an early adopter of the Energiesprong approach to the Deep Retrofit Energy Model (DREeM), enabling energy-efficient retrofits to dozens of social homes, Nottingham City Homes have been among the first in the UK to develop neighbourhood-wide retrofits. Nottingham City Council even tested the innovative use of Low Temperature District Heating along with whole house retrofits for 94 homes in Sneinton, which proved more complex than initially expected.

In Scotland, the Renfrewshire retrofit programme aims for EnerPHit or AECB Retrofit Standard for up to 3,500 homes across eight neighbourhoods. The initiative is part of a £100m housing-led regeneration programme across the local authority. Renfrewshire Council was selected as Social Landlord of the Year 2022 by the Retrofit Academy for its clear strategy to deliver large-scale housing decarbonisation, adopt the PAS2035 framework wherever possible, and for its proactive engagement of residents throughout the programme.

Other noteworthy programmes include whole house retrofits for 150 council-owned flats on the Holt Dale Estate in Leeds, reaching EPC rating A, benefitting residents who were living in fuel poverty. The 3 Cities Retrofit programme is worth following up as it has the potential to retrofit up to 165,000 social homes across the Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton City Councils.

In France, 14 housing associations in Brittany have partnered to leverage the Energiesprong approach for an initial stock of 2,000 social homes, with a potential to extend the experience to 16,000 social homes. In the north of France, the housing association Maison et Cités selected hemp concrete as the most effective material for a progressive roll-out of fabric-first retrofits to 20,000 homes in the former mining region. Both area-wide retrofit approaches were part-funded by the French public investment agency Banque des Territoires.

Upscaling tenant engagement

Residents should be onboard from day one of their property’s retrofit, but they can also actively contribute to wider retrofit programmes. Insight from the Social Housing Tenants’ Climate Jury report (2021) and the Resident Voices in the Net Zero Carbon Journey report both point to the need to educate and actively involve residents from the planning phase to supporting sustainable lifestyles.

One year on, these needs were felt even more acutely in the build-up to COP26. Critically, residents have expressed that perceived contradictions in council-led environmental strategies such as recycling can have knock-on effects on how they perceive the value and effectiveness of retrofits. This implies that efforts toward improving energy-efficiency and reducing waste should be consistent.

Resident-led and national initiatives have included community gardening and the Incredible Edible network. These can provide additional involvement opportunities as well as quality food and care for the neighbourhood. The demand for greener urban spaces, biodiversity and access to wildlife also came strongly in a related report by Orbit and the Chartered Institute of Housing. Initiatives that upscale tenant engagement include recruiting tenants as board members (at Connect Housing) or embedding tenant involvement in the housing provider’s sustainability strategy (at Notting Hill Genesis).

Providers can also encourage residents to contribute to the Together with Tenants Charter led by the National Housing Federation. The organisation Tpas and partners have shared tenant engagement guidance for ALMOs and housing associations that will be useful in seeking to upscale social housing retrofits. In addition, there has been a recent ministerial push encouraging tenants to voice their concerns more readily, and therefore to exercise scrutiny over what may be dismal housing conditions.

Final thoughts

Collaboration and cross-sectoral partnerships underpinned by active tenant engagement seem essential to deliver large retrofit programmes while hedging against otherwise deterring risks. Exemplars, in turn, help build a greater ‘can do’ attitude and know-how for the wider housing and property sectors on the road to net zero, including area-wide retrofits.

Ian Babelon is a UX Researcher in Idox.

Leading by examples – retrofitting all types of social housing – part one

Posted on May 22, 2023 by jamescarson2014

By Ian Babelon

In the first of two blog posts, Idox’s Ian Babelon takes us on a tour of some of the best social housing retrofits in Britain, and beyond.

Blog posts on the Knowledge Exchange blog have repeatedly shown the need to retrofit social homes at scale to provide decent, comfortable homes while building capacity for low-carbon homes. The recent Powering Up Britain agenda highlights the long-term economic, environmental and social benefits of retrofitting homes, with the latest government funding opportunities including the second round of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF2) and ECO+. Thankfully, decades of learning in the UK and internationally have led to exemplar retrofits for all types of homes. After considering best practice guidance, this post provides a selection of examples across the UK and beyond.

Designing it right

The National Housing Federation has gathered excellent industry guidance about decarbonising social homes, and how to retrofit traditional and historic homes.

For example, the Sustainable Traditional Buildings Alliance’s Guidance Wheel helps to visualise and manage the interactions between the different dimensions of retrofits required to implement the landmark PAS2035 retrofit framework.

The Sustainable Renovation Guide by the Scottish Ecological Design Guide (SEDA) also provides excellent technical guidance for retrofitting various types of homes. Airtightness is often essential to achieving good energy performance as it prevents thermal gaps, as detailed in this technical guide.

Industry-leading, on-demand webinars hosted by the Northern Housing Consortium also provide guidance and inspiration for all aspects of low-carbon social housing retrofits, from financing to neighbourhood-wide retrofits. Experience shows that having an airtightness champion in the construction team is also key to successful retrofits.

To make best use of technical and design guidance, having Unique Property Reference Numbers (UPRNs) provide a ‘golden thread’ for housing associations. Being able to accurately identify and differentiate between all properties enables compilation of complete datasets about housing stocks.

The Better Social Housing Review (2022) encourages housing associations to work together to conduct and publish an audit of the UK social housing stock. A clearer picture of all social housing can benefit both individual organisations and the wider industry in tracking progress toward decarbonisation and healthy, affordable homes for all. Recent assessments by the Regulator of Social Housing for council homes in London have further revealed the importance of up-to-date, complete datasets to monitor and guarantee building safety measures. Related benefits can include consistent monitoring of energy performance, environmental health, carbon emissions, and customer experience.

Historic and older homes

Social housing in the UK is often associated with housing construction in the period between 1947 and the 1980s. However, according to existing housing unit statistics in England for 2021, there is a total of 400,000 social homes built in the interwar period, and 273,000 social homes built before 1919. Older homes can be located in conservation areas, which limits options for retrofitting.

In 2019, Southside Housing Association used the EnerPHit retrofitting approach (involving the highest levels of energy efficiency) to pre-1919 tenements on Niddrie Road in Glasgow, with a design by John Gilbert Architects, in collaboration with Strathclyde University. As is often required for older housing, the eight one-bed flats benefitted from internal wall insulation to preserve the sandstone street façades. Natural building products were favoured as much as possible to guarantee indoor air quality and permeability while reducing embodied carbon and energy. Heating was supplied with new Air Source Heat Pumps or energy efficient combi gas boilers, along with mechanical ventilation heat recovery units (MVHRs). The project serves as a demonstration exemplar for “deep” tenement retrofits, and received funding from Glasgow City Council, the commissioning housing association, the Scottish Government and the Scottish Funding Council.

High rises

In Hamilton, Ontario, the Ken Soble Tower owned by CityHousing Hamilton was nearing the end of its life, having been built in 1967. The 2021 EnerPHit refurbishment featured external-wall and roof insulation, along with Air Source Heat Pumps. Completed in 2021, it is the first EnerPHit retrofit of an apartment tower in North America, providing 146 affordable housing units to older residents.

Back in Glasgow, the Cedars Court high-rise, comprising 314 flats, owned by Queens Cross Housing Association, benefitted from the first of its kind fabric-first EnerPHit refurbishment in Scotland between 2016 and 2019.

Further examples of high-rise retrofits include 528 flats across three tower blocks at Edward Woods Estate (2011-2014) in Shepherds Bush, Hammersmith and Fulham, and retrofits of 291 flats across two tower blocks at Ethelred Estate (2009-2010) in Kennington, Lambeth.

Co-operative social housing

In London, the North Camden Housing Co-operative commissioned a deep retrofit of Carlton Chapel House to EnerPHit standards. The social housing block of 15 flats was built in the 1980s, and was later susceptible to energy losses, forcing residents into fuel poverty. Renovation took place in 2019, and required decanting tenants to temporary accommodation. Collaboration between the construction contractors and the architects was key to achieving airtightness. Residents reported improved air quality, thermal comfort, and less noise after moving back.

Rural retrofits

The guidance about older and traditional homes is often relevant for social homes in rural locations. Swaffham Prior Heat Network is the first of its kind in the UK, delivering a mix of ground source and air source communal heat to 300 homes, including residents at Sanctuary social homes. The project is the result of collaboration between the Swaffham Prior Community Land Trust, Cambridgeshire County Council and the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.

Learning from examples

In seeking to bring new life to dysfunctional buildings, it pays to learn from other projects, including unforeseen challenges. Flagship retrofits such as the low rise flats at Erneley Close in Manchester (2015) and 11-storey housing blocks at Wilmcote House in Portsmouth (2014-2018) revealed structural issues while retrofits were under way. Such technical and financial complexities illustrate inherent risks to retrofitting homes that initial building surveys, however comprehensive, may fail to detect. Decanting residents or allowing them to stay in occupancy during retrofit works can both be a challenging experience. In both instances, however, residents reported significant improvements to living conditions after final completion.

Final Thoughts

The scale of the retrofit challenge is enormous. This does not mean starting from scratch, however. The wide range of projects cited in this article demonstrate that social housing retrofits can be delivered at scale for nearly all types of homes, apart from structurally unredeemable buildings. It pays, therefore, to learn, and lead, by example.

Ian Babelon is a UX Researcher in Idox. The second of his blog posts on social housing retrofits will appear in this blog on Wednesday 24 May.

Photograph: Samuel Ryde on Unsplash

Growing opportunities: the multiple benefits of community gardens

Posted on April 3, 2023 by jamescarson2014

Today sees the start of Community Garden Week 2023. Across the UK, communities will be celebrating the many and varied types of community gardens, from children’s and neighbourhood gardens to therapy gardens and allotments.

The benefits of community gardens are almost endless. Evidence suggests that spending time outdoors in green spaces has positive effects on mental and physical health. Community gardens are also social spaces, bringing volunteers from different backgrounds together, which can reduce loneliness and help people of all ages learn more about nature. Community gardens have numerous positive environmental impacts, including improvements to air, soil and water, as well as increasing the biodiversity of plants and animals.

Strong roots, vital functions

Community gardens have their roots in agrarian societies dating back thousands of years. Later, as people moved into cities, many of them transformed plots of urban land into green spaces. These have been especially important for growing food in times of crisis. During World War II, the government’s “Dig For Victory” campaign transformed Britain from a food importer to a largely self-sufficient economy. By the end of the war, 75% of food was homegrown and there were 1.4 million allotments across the country.

During the post-war years, the UK’s reliance on food imports has risen, and by 2020 almost half of our food came from overseas. At the same time, supermarkets have overtaken shops selling local produce, and there has been a steep rise in consumption of processed foods, with subsequent impacts on the nation’s health.

Back to the land

But in recent years, things have started to change. The Covid-19 pandemic underlined the value of green spaces for improving our health and wellbeing. In addition, greater attention to healthy eating, environmental protection and rising food costs has attracted more people to the idea of growing their own fruit and vegetables, herbs and flowers.

Governments have taken note of these trends, and at national and local levels they have introduced measures aiming to make it easier to establish community gardens. One such example is the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act. Passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2015, the aim of this law is to support communities in doing things for themselves. Part 9 of the Act concerns increasing the accessibility of the land to those who wish to grow their own food.

The Act requires every Scottish local authority to prepare and publish its own food growing strategy. These strategies identify land for allotments and other community growing and describe how the authority will meet demand. While preparing their strategies, local authorities have consulted a wide range of stakeholders, including allotment associations, community councils, current allotment holders and existing community gardens.

Planning departments need to be involved in the preparation of food growing strategies, and will also require consultation about consents for community garden projects. But there is a clear shift towards official encouragement of community growing. The Scottish Government’s most recent National Planning Framework specifically mentions the importance of land for community food growing as an integral part of placemaking.

Food Growing Strategies: diverse ideas in action

The food growing strategies published so far demonstrate that Scotland’s local authorities have enthusiastically embraced the responsibilities placed upon them by the Community Empowerment Act.

Scottish Borders Council’s Food Growing Strategy includes ideas on getting started in growing activities, guidance on available support and information about existing community gardens and orchards in the region. It also features case studies of successful community gardens, including the Greenhouse Project in Galashiels, which provides home-grown produce for food parcels distributed to local families. The project also provides live cookery classes for children and recipe bags to support home cooking and healthier meals.

Argyll and Bute Council’s Food Growing Strategy features examples of good practice, including a case study of the Kyles Allotment Group, which was set up after the community purchased Acharossan Forest. The group rents plots to local people who grow a variety of fruit and vegetables, and there is also a community orchard.

Falkirk Council’s Food Growing Strategy explains how the council plans to increase space for allotments and community growing, including using some of the 632 parks and open spaces across the area for new growing sites.

The preparations for Glasgow’s Food Growing Strategy included a series of community engagement meetings across the city at which people were asked to identify any potential growing sites in their area. As a result, the strategy provides a map of existing and potential allotment sites in Glasgow.

Growing pains

The increasing popularity of home-grown food has underlined the shortage of growing spaces. Last year, local authorities in Scotland reported high numbers of people were waiting for an allotment. In Edinburgh, the figure was 2,637, with a similar number in Glasgow. In some council areas the waiting list dated back 10 years.

In response to the significant demand for allotments, the Scottish Parliament’s Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee launched an inquiry to scrutinise the delivery of local authorities’ responsibilities concerning community growing under the Community Empowerment Act. The Committee published its findings in 2022.

Among the challenges identified by the inquiry was the difficulty in gaining access to land for growing. Some witnesses giving evidence to the Committee expressed frustration about large amounts of vacant land that had the potential as growing spaces being unused by developers. The Committee also repeatedly heard that limited resources in planning departments were holding up applications for new allotments.

Among its recommendations, the Committee suggested that the Scottish Government might explore whether the provisions of Part 9 of the Community Empowerment Act could be extended beyond local authority owned allotments to other sites, such as those offered by the NHS, or to private allotment sites.

Beyond allotments: community growing opportunities

The shortage of allotments doesn’t mean people can’t get involved. Volunteering websites advertise numerous opportunities to join community garden projects. While previous experience is welcomed, most community gardens are just happy to receive help of any kind. And for the volunteers, enjoying the fresh air, meeting new people and learning new skills are just some of the rewards of taking part.

Food poverty, climate change, health inequalities and social isolation are among the big challenges of our age. No-one is suggesting that community growing projects can solve these problems on their own. But in their own modest way, community gardens are improving the lives of individuals, enriching communities and doing their bit for the planet.

Photo by Elaine Casap on Unsplash

Further reading: more from The Knowledge Exchange blog on green spaces

MyFundingCentral: helping thousands of charities address financial pressures

Posted on September 5, 2022 by morwenj

The effects of the current cost of living and inflation rises are spiralling through society, and the voluntary and charitable sector is on the frontline when it comes to supporting struggling individuals and communities. However, the organisations delivering this support are anticipating significant financial pressures themselves this winter.

Rising demand and rising costs are combining with falling charitable income to create a crisis within the sector. At the start of September, 46 sector organisations issued a joint statement calling on the Government to provide targeted financial support for charities, voluntary and community organisations and to include these organisations in any plans to support businesses.

Funders are already starting to respond to the pressures – and an anticipated increase in demand for food, debt advice and mental health support – by closing or pausing regular funding schemes in order to launch new emergency funding opportunities, just as they did during the pandemic. It is expected that funders will also provide more support for core costs, in order to help organisations struggling with energy costs or retaining staff.

The importance of grants for the sector

Even in normal times, the voluntary and charitable sector relies heavily on grants from trusts, foundations and government in order to carry out its crucial work.

Recent research from the Law Family Commission on Civil Society has shown, though, that small and medium charities face particularly high costs in accessing funding. On average, they devote more than a third of their total annual grant income to applying for charitable grants. The report suggested that a key cause of this is making applications for funding for which they are actually ineligible.

Smaller charities are unlikely to have dedicated funding officers to search for funding and submit applications. With thousands of funders awarding grants to charities for a wide range of causes and beneficiaries, it can be hugely difficult to keep track of potential funding opportunities and decide which are most relevant.

An affordable, essential solution

It’s for this reason that more and more small charities are turning to MyFundingCentral to help them. Now in its second year of operation, the MyFundingCentral database (produced by software specialists Idox) provides easy access to thousands of grants and social investment opportunities from local, national and international funding sources – all in one place.

The service is available to organisations with an annual income below £1m and is free for organisations whose income is under £30k. Larger charity and voluntary organisations can access Idox’s GrantFinder service, which works with organisations with an income over £1 million.

MyFundingCentral is designed for easy use and around 3000 small charities use the service every month to find funding to keep existing projects going or to expand their work. It is updated every day with new funding opportunities from charitable trusts, foundations, councils, national government and corporate sponsors.

Success stories

Charities regularly share their success stories with us.

Paula Baker who is Director of HeadsUp Mental Health Awareness CIC was pleased to report that they secured £14,500 from four grants identified through MyFundingCentral. “It’s an easy-to-use service, which has benefitted us greatly.” HeadsUp is a charity that works with children and young people, promoting understanding, raising awareness, and breaking down the stigma that surrounds mental health issues. Even small amounts of grant funding can have a big impact on the number of children and young people that they are able to help.

Lucy Whitehouse, Founder and CEO of Fumble.org.uk said that “MyFundingCentral’s portal is totally invaluable to us as a tiny, fledgling charity with really limited staff capacity. The service has helped us find and apply for relevant funding opportunities that we otherwise wouldn’t know about or be able to access.”

Easy to use

Subscribers to MyFundingCentral have immediate access to a database tailored to meet the needs of the charities and voluntary sector. Users of the service can:

search the database to identify opportunities that match their project;
find niche funding opportunities that free funding tools typically miss;
narrow searches to funding available in specific geographic areas;
receive alerts about new funding opportunities tailored to their needs direct to their inbox; and
get the latest news on funding.

The database is easy to use, with key eligibility criteria highlighted, and information on how to apply fully explained. There’s no jargon, and because all of the funding opportunities have been handpicked by MyFundingCentral researchers to be right for the sector, users can be sure that they are current and relevant to their needs.

For further information and to subscribe, visit the MyFundingCentral website.

Further reading: more about the charities and voluntary sector on The Knowledge Exchange Blog

Photo essay: celebrating street art

Posted on July 11, 2022 by jamescarson2014

For those of us living in, working in and passing through towns and cities, street art has become as familiar as road signage and commercial advertising. Usually taking the form of murals, street art has multiple purposes: it provides artists with a means of displaying their talents and expressing themselves; it can help a place tell a story about itself, highlighting the people and things that have made it what it is today; and it can contribute to the regeneration of a place, demonstrating that communities care about their environment.

Using images from Glasgow – a city with a strong tradition of street art – this photo essay highlights some of the historical, social and artistic elements that have helped to transform parts of the city. It also features extracts from articles and reports that have underlined the importance of street art.

“Artists have embraced the street and the built environment as integral to their work and practice, individual pieces reflecting context and location as surfaces become living canvases, rehumanizing the urban landscape.”
– Asli Aktu: Shaping Places Through Art

“In the process of creating and searching for street art pieces, both the artist and the viewer often get to explore parts of the city they would rarely visit otherwise. Places such as alleys or empty lots, dead spaces below or around bridges and other infrastructures, even off-limits terrains such as abandoned tunnels.”
– Javier Abarca: From street art to murals: what have we lost?

“According to a research on the effect of mural on personal crime and fear of crime conducted by Md. Sakip, R. et. al. (2016) in Ipoh, Malaysia, most … strongly agree that they are feeling safe when using back alleys with the art mural on a wall. A safe environment is achieved as there are better opportunities for public surveillance caused by the increase in tourists and local community’s awareness. If the environment continues to be safe, the more tourists will be attracted to visit the city.”
– Siti Syamimi Oma: Bringing the New to the Old : Urban regeneration through public
arts

“Murals are a reflection of the community. They can be historically significant because they serve as a reminder for a particular struggle or victory for the community. They can be beautiful and uplifting, generating a source of pride for residents of a particular neighborhood.”
– Summit Learning & C3 Teachers: Does street art make communities better?

“Art can celebrate the qualities that make one place different from another. The best of public art can challenge, delight, educate and illuminate. Most of all, public art creates a sense of civic vitality in the cities, towns and communities we inhabit and visit.”
Americans for the Arts: Public Art Network Council Green Paper

“With its ability to embrace multiple urban subcultures and visual styles in a globally distributed practice, street art provides a new dialogic configuration, a post-postmodern hybridity that will continue to generate many new kinds of works and genres.“
– Martin Irvine: The work on the street: street art and visual culture

“Whether sanctioned or unsanctioned, murals are a key component of place-making. They may even have the power to change neighbourhoods.“
– IBI Group: Street murals – the power of public art

Many of the murals included in this blog post are featured in this guide accompanying Glasgow City’s Council’s Mural Trail.

Co-housing: the promises and the pitfalls

Posted on June 6, 2022 by jamescarson2014

Over the past two years, the coronavirus pandemic and the cost of living crisis have eclipsed the UK’s chronic housing shortage. But the housing challenges of 2019 are still with us in 2022, and in many ways they have worsened. According to the housing charity Shelter, over 17 million people are living in overcrowded, dangerous, unstable or unaffordable housing.

There’s no single solution to Britain’s housing emergency. But one idea that’s gaining increasing attention is co-housing.

A London School of Economics report has given a good definition of co-housing:

“A co-housing group is formed by a community of people typically with similar needs and interests. Co-housing is owned by the group and usually contains private rooms or houses with communal areas such as living rooms and kitchens, where people will come together to share meals and spend time together. The residents are responsible for the management and maintenance of the site, and they are run in a non-hierarchical way, giving all residents an equal say in how they are organised.”

The modern co-housing movement began in Denmark in the 1970s, and has since spread to other European countries, including Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands. There is now a growing number of co-housing projects in the UK, and although these are small in scale, they are pointing the way to alternative models of housing, and also to addressing other social issues, such as isolation and loneliness.

The promises of co-housing

The proponents of co-housing suggest that it has multiple benefits for residents:

affordability: by pooling resources such as cooking, childcare, and household expenses, co-housing residents can cut costs;
security: co-housing provides safe spaces for residents to live and socialise;
sustainability: sharing resources increases efficiency and reduces waste;
community: co-housing residents make decisions together, and co-housing can also reduce the chances of isolation.

The multiple faces of co-housing

There is no single template for co-housing. Some projects have a mixture of generations, singles, couples and families, while others focus on the needs of particular communities. In the United States, intergenerational co-housing projects have brought together retired people, families and foster children. Another scheme, in Berlin, has been designed for older gay men, but also welcomes older lesbian women, trans and inter persons, as well as younger LGBTQ+ people.

In 2016, the UK’s first co-housing project for older women opened in Barnet, north London. The New Ground scheme has been successful in developing a mutually supportive community of women over the age of 50. In addition, New Ground has worked to encourage policy makers, planners and housing associations to recognise the social and economic benefits of co-housing, and to respond to the demand that exists for senior co-housing.

Because co-housing is often seen as being reserved for communities who are affluent and predominantly white, Housing 21, a leading provider of retirement properties for older people, has recently launched a co-housing initiative with a focus on older Black and Asian people of modest financial means.

Tackling isolation: how co-housing can address loneliness

The communal nature of co-housing makes it a natural fit for people who are isolated and lonely. This was one of the themes of a recent webinar hosted by Housing LIN. One of the participants was Kath Scanlon, a researcher from the London School of Economics, who highlighted her work exploring the links between loneliness and participation in community-led housing.

Kath’s research has underlined the importance of social connection with neighbours and sharing spaces with others as ways of preventing loneliness:

“Broadly, we found that the most tight-knit places, where members knew and trusted each other most, performed best as supportive communities… Emotional loneliness was countered by fostering meaningful relationships and ‘belonging’ through physical proximity, sharing similar values, a reciprocal commitment and care, looking out for and supporting each other.”

A resident’s perspective

One of the most engaging and powerful contributions to the Housing LIN webinar came from Alison Cahn, who has been a resident at Lancaster Cohousing scheme since 2012.

Alison was one of the first residents of the scheme, which is an intergenerational co-housing community of households in the village of Halton, three miles from Lancaster in the North West of England.

The Lancaster scheme was designed by the people who live there. It consists of private homes, community facilities and shared outdoor space. Shared facilities include a laundry, food store and a car share scheme.

As Alison explained, the scheme is an eco-housing community, designed to make sustainable living easy. The homes are built to Passivhaus standards, which means they use about 15% of the energy to heat compared to conventional housing. Electricity comes from the scheme’s own microgrid. And if Alison needs anything, from a drill to a tent, she can borrow it from her neighbours. Overall, the scheme is estimated to save around 540 tonnes of CO2 every year (a single tonne of CO2 is equivalent to a 500 m3 hot air balloon).

Alison also highlighted the social aspects of co-housing. The scheme has been designed to enable residents to meet and interact. As well as sharing facilities, the residents get involved in communal activities, such as art, camping and wild swimming. They also work together and make decisions on the future development of the scheme.

Alison watched her mother grow old alone, and was determined that this shouldn’t happen to her. She feels supported by her neighbours, something that was especially important when her husband fell ill. Alison also spoke very movingly about another resident called Roger, who found support from the co-housing community in the final weeks of his life. As she explained: “Roger said he came to this co-housing scheme to die, but he didn’t. He actually came here to live.”

The pitfalls of co-housing

While Alison was keen to stress the attractions of co-housing, she also described the challenges. “Different people need different levels of social connections. Not everyone is keen to spend much time with their neighbours, and some prefer their privacy.” While decisions are taken together, reaching a consensus can take time, with general meetings sometimes getting heated. “Some bitter conflicts have fractured relationships, and some people have left.”

And although co-housing can reduce isolation, some residents have the impression that it will solve all their problems – “We’re neighbours, not carers or psychotherapists.”