Alternative housing in London: Three examples from one south London neighbourhood Kath Scanlon and...
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Transcript of Alternative housing in London: Three examples from one south London neighbourhood Kath Scanlon and...
Alternative housing in London: Three examples from one south London
neighbourhood
Kath Scanlon and Melissa FernandezLSE London
14 April 2015
Before looking at alternatives…
What is standard London housing?
• Dwelling types: half houses, half flats
• Age: 40% built before 1900 (mostly in inner London)
• Outer London—spike in 1930s
• Tenure: 48% owner occupation; 24% social housing; 26% private rental
• Built by speculative builders (private) or local authority or housing association (social)
An idea of prices
Average dwelling price (London-wide)£356,054 = €493,190
Median private rent (London-wide)£1300/month = €1800
One- or two-bedroom flat, furnished
The current model
• High demand for housing (strong economy; demand from both local residents and overseas investors; population growth and immigration) →
• High house prices, which should →
• New supply – but does it work? Mayoral target: 42,000 new homes/year. Last actual: 17,930 completions.
Why not?• Planning constraints (green belt etc)• Local political and public opposition to new construction• Dominance of a few large house builders
What’s ‘Alternative housing’, and can it help?
Alternative logics, models and practices that
• Recognise the inadequacies of current market offer;• Challenge dominant forms of provision by offering
something complementary – or something disruptive
Includes
• Experimental , life-style and utopian schemes (e.g., co-housing and self-build)
• Technical solutions (e.g., live-work units and flat-pack housing)
The policy context
In London
• 'Build Your Own Home – the London Way’
• 2013-15: HCA ‘Community Right to Build’
Nationally• Funding for self-build• Guidance for councils• Modified tax regime• Using modular pre-fab• Housing Zone prospectus
One example: Walters Way, south London
Features: • Simple ‘flat pack’
construction method
• 13 homes self-built by eventual owner-occupiers
• Based on standard units of construction materials so easy to modify
1980s project, designed byWalter Segal
Walters Way
But…• Timber frame construction
viewed as flimsy in Britain• Dwellings built with
unconventional techniques can be difficult to mortgage
• Local authority supported/organized this scheme and a couple of others nearby, but institutional memory of innovation is now lost
2nd example: Artists’ live/work community
Havelock Walk, Forest Hill, south LondonFeatures: • entire street of properties that combine
living and working space for artists• Grew organically over 10+ years from
original foothold by sculptor• Now established artists’ neighbourhood
that has had ripple effects across the area
But…• Development done in spite of council
opposition• Popularity of the scheme means new units
now cost £1 million plus—too much for most artists
3rd example: Co-housing community for older people
Featherstone Lodge, Forest Hill, south London
‘intentional communities… created and run by their residents. Each household has a self-contained, personal and private home but residents come together to manage their community, share activities, eat together. Cohousing is a way of combating the alienation and isolation many experience today, recreating the neighbourly support of a village or city quarter in the past’
(UK Co-housing network)
An ongoing process
Our research into one scheme
Located in Forest Hill, South London
Began in 2011 after Housing Association bought the land/site [site-first]
Senior (50+) group, mainly single women
Long process: - just got planning permission—start-
finish minimum 5 years- Cost uncertainty and fluctuation
Issues
• Finding a site and high cost of land (for developers and groups): difficult to compete with commercial providers; need improved access to finance
• Newness of the endeavor leads to misunderstandings in relationships with Housing Association & Local Authorities; so greater knowledge needed