The role of housing goes far beyond physical shelter and safety. It introduces people to a community to which they can belong, a space which is their own, a communal setting where they can make friends, form relationships and a place where they can go for support, social interaction and reduce feelings of loneliness and […]
Earlier this year, official figures showed that rough sleeping in England had risen for the sixth successive year. The data showed that 4,134 people slept on the street in 2016, an increase of 16% on the previous year’s figure of 3,569, and more than double the 2010 figure. Many of those enduring long-term homelessness have […]
Guest blog: Matthew Carmona and Lucy Natarajan Here at The Bartlett, UCL we recently completed a major study of the eleven years of publically funded CABE, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. We evaluated the work, history, and impact of the organisation, and the ‘tools’ it used to promote good urban design across England. […]
Last December, research by Inside Housing magazine found that more than a third of English local authorities have already – or are planning to – set up their own housing companies. The research showed that 98 out of 252 councils were considering the establishment of a private housing development company, or had already established one. […]
The European Union has not had its troubles to seek in the years following the financial meltdown of 2008. Continuing concerns about the euro, the refugee crisis and Brexit are challenging Europe’s leaders as never before, leading to speculation about the very existence of the EU. But at the end of March, new research highlighted […]
Long regarded as a relic of the past, prefabricated housing is now emerging as a potential solution for the UK’s chronic shortage of affordable homes. Britain’s golden age of prefabricated housing happened after World War II, when the government authorised thousands of factory-built homes to replace housing destroyed by bombing raids. Intended to last for […]
By James Carson After a delay of several months, the government’s housing white paper was finally published last week. Its title – “Fixing our broken housing market” – makes clear that England’s housing market requires radical reform. The communities secretary, Sajid Javid underlined this when presenting the paper to MPs: “We have to build more, […]
There’s little doubt that many of Britain’s homes need to improve their energy efficiency. A 2015 study by the Association for the Conservation of Energy found that the UK has among the highest rates of fuel poverty and one of the most energy inefficient housing stocks in Europe. In terms of energy efficiency, the UK […]
The housing challenges facing London are well documented:: London needs around 50,000 new homes a year, but housebuilding is running at around half that. Between 2005 and 2015, private rents in London rose by an average of 35%. Future projections suggest there will be 9m people in London by 2020, 10m by 2030 and 11m […]
How does the planning system recognise and reflect the needs of different social groups for housing and amenities? And how should planning respond to current demographic trends? You would assume that these questions would be central concerns of strategic planning and local plan creation, given the long-term view that these processes require. Arguably however, statutory […]
