Social Life’s Post

🏗 🏡 🌳 In the last few months we've completed our latest round of assessments of the impact of regeneration on Woodberry Down and Grahame Park - and started work on new projects in two new (for us) estates, Clapham Park in Lambeth and Cambridge Road in Kingston-upon-Thames. As housing policy shifts and we focus on how to build more homes we can learn from our work on regeneration schemes - developing policy for the future to create homes and communities, building on local areas' social and environmental assets. We have long-term ongoing relationships with these places, communities and agencies. We've been in South Acton and Woodberry for nearly a decade. The measurements we use most often – ability to influence, belonging, strength of relationships with neighbours, social integration and community cohesion, wellbeing, loneliness, fear of crime and financial precarity – are central to social impact strategies that focus on place and community. We have been looking at the impact of estate regeneration programmes that started over 15 years ago. They are the products of their time and the imperatives that drove past housing policy. As well as lessons for each area there are important messages for regeneration programmes being developed today. We believe we need to pay more attention to: 🎉 safeguarding the social and environmental assets of local areas, to build on what is protective and supports people to thrive in what can be difficult circumstances 🌇 meeting the needs of residents in different circumstances including people without housing or employment security  🛶 raising our collective game to minimise the negative environmental consequences of demolition and rebuilding, making better decisions about the balance between social, environmental and economic trade offs. There are transferrable lessons for housing policy. Investment today has to work for the future of communities and neighbourhoods and avoid the mistakes of the past. Full blog here https://lnkd.in/ebqUzbZJ #socialsustainability #estateregeneration #newhomes #wellbeing

Housing Help Executive Director Pilar Moya-Mancera: "This study brilliantly highlights a significant yet underexplored opportunity for addressing our current housing challenges by utilizing underused land owned by Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs). By emphasizing the potential for residential development on these properties, the research offers a promising avenue to contribute to alleviating the housing crisis. The study's thoughtful recommendations—such as advancing policies to unlock unused zoning potential, easing zoning restrictions, and providing technical assistance to FBOs—are practical and impactful steps that could transform these untapped resources into viable housing solutions. This comprehensive approach not only respects the diverse missions of FBOs but also fosters a collaborative pathway towards a more inclusive and sustainable housing future for our communities." #faithbasedhousing #housing #affordablehousing #housingcrisis https://lnkd.in/d2dEEJ6a

As Europe aims to boost its supply of housing at scale, the integration of community-led place stewardship will be crucial to the vitality, resilience, and sustainability of large-scale developments, which as we've seen in the past isn't the de facto outcome!

NEW BLOG | Creating neighbourhoods, not just chasing targets, must be our planning ambition As the new NPPF is published, Joshua Nicholson (The Centre for Social Justice) makes the case for government policy to prioritise well-designed neighbourhoods with access to green space "The built environment is fundamentally associated with loneliness. For example, CSJ analysis has found a statistically significant relationship between loneliness and access to green space. Over half of adults who have access to green space never feel lonely. But for adults who have no access to green space, this relationship reverses. Over half say they feel lonely." https://lnkd.in/ea4r2vXv

Size matters. Being big enough to make an impact. Staying small enough to care. I'm talking housing. With all the rightful aspiration of strategic scale and alignment, how do we ensure communities remain at the heart of new development? After all, it's people that turn spaces into places. For me more could be said about the role #placemaking and #stewardship have to play in easing a tension between strategic scale and local participation. But what do I mean by stewardship? See below! 🏡 Did we land anywhere close to what it means to you? 🏡 Or maybe you label it differently? 🏡 Is it now our best chance of ensuring communities remain a key part to this Government's drive for scale and pace in housing delivery and greater strategic planning? Come be part of our conversation - we'd love to know your thoughts! Comment below 👇 or get in touch with one of our brilliant stewardship team: Carina Davis Tom Nash Hannah Cheminais Peter Collins Luke Kelly Justine Rae James Fawdon And if that's got you thinking, both The Stewardship Initiative and Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) have some great resources at hand all about putting communities at the heart of development and regeneration. Size matters. It's more than just about the numbers. #stewardship #placemaking #newtowns #newtownstaskforce #realestatedevelopment #solvingthehousingcrisis #communities

The Abundant Housing Network Australia, a national alliance working to build a more sustainable, liveable and affordable vision for housing and cities, launched in 2023 with the release of our submission to the Senate rental crisis inquiry. AHNA believes housing abundance—building more homes where people want to live—is key to solving the housing crisis and building the kind of cities people love. AHNA, whose member organisations are Greater Brisbane, Greater Canberra, Sydney YIMBY and YIMBY Melbourne, chose this inquiry to launch due to the impact low vacancy rates and the lack of appropriate housing supply have on rental affordability. Many of AHNA’s members are renters and have experienced the rental crisis first hand—joining dozens of other desperate renters jostling to secure whatever rentals are available, whatever the price. Low vacancy rates in the private & public rental systems and sluggish development, especially in areas of high amenity, are key drivers behind the current rental crisis. The solution lies in building more, denser housing of every type & tenure in those places where people want to live. To navigate out of the rental affordability crisis, AHNA outlines a vision for greater coordination on housing, planning and infrastructure between the Commonwealth, state, territory and local governments. A pro-housing policy agenda—combined with broader regulatory levers that improve renters rights and urban infrastructure—will greatly increase renters’ bargaining power. While there is room for more ambition—especially on renters rights and public & social housing—these planning reforms & upzoning incentives are the kinds of changes we need to unlock new supply, reduce housing costs & remove unnecessary regulation for public & private developments. AHNA’s full submission—covering housing policy coordination, planning reforms, public and social housing, social and transport infrastructure, and rental regulation—can be found on our website at https://lnkd.in/g_Qabypb

🏡 Building balance in Ontario’s housing market with affordable housing solutions! Across the province, recent projects are addressing gaps in the market and ensuring stability for those most in need: 📍 Guelph & Kitchener: $3.8M for 36 new homes and 9 repairs. 📍 Toronto: 20 culturally relevant homes for Indigenous Peoples at 230 Coxwell, operated by Na-Me-Res. 📍 London: $89M for 245 new homes and 393 repaired units, focusing on seniors, Indigenous Peoples, and people with disabilities. 📍 St. Thomas: 40 homes through the "Tiny Hope" project, supporting women, Indigenous Peoples, and young adults. 📍 Toronto: Conversion of the Bond Hotel into 280 affordable homes with $123M from the Rapid Housing Initiative. These projects aim to bring stability to the market while creating housing opportunities for vulnerable populations. Affordable housing is a vital part of Ontario’s strategy to address housing challenges and build thriving communities. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gPr3pr5

🏠 Navigating the Current Landscape of Social Housing in the UK 🏠 The social housing sector in the UK is at a pivotal moment. With increasing demand for affordable housing, rising living costs, and a pressing need for sustainable solutions, the industry faces both challenges and opportunities. As we look to the future, it’s clear that collaboration among local authorities, housing associations, and private developers is essential. Innovative approaches, such as green building practices and community engagement, can help us create not just houses, but thriving communities. Moreover, addressing issues of maintenance, quality, and accessibility remains crucial. Everyone deserves a safe and comfortable place to call home, and it's up to us in the industry to ensure that we meet this fundamental need. Let’s work together to reshape the future of social housing and make a lasting impact on our communities! 🌍💚 #SocialHousing #AffordableHousing #UKHousing #Sustainability #CommunityImpact

What drives affordable housing programs? It's about creating safe, sustainable, and inclusive spaces for individuals and families to thrive. Join the conversation on how we can make housing accessible for all! Share your thoughts below #AffordableHousing #HousingForAll #HousingAdvocacy #SustainableLiving #HDAN #HousingDevelopment

I'm so pleased to share that this week we have launched the first case study project as part of our Decent Neighbourhood Standard research programme. Witton Lodge Community Association (WLCA) has partnered with the Centre for the New Midlands and Social Life to develop a place-based evaluation framework to measure WLCA’s impact at the neighbourhood level. This project will combine research, stakeholder engagement, and community participation to create a Decent Neighbourhood Standard. Why does this matter? Neighbourhoods are the vital link between homes and communities. The quality of homes cannot be considered in isolation from the quality of the places they sit within. Just as we have a Decent Homes Standard, ensuring a minimum standard for housing quality, isn’t it time we introduced a Decent Neighbourhood Standard? One that sets clear benchmarks for decency, safety, and sustainability, tackling social inequalities and neighbourhood-level hazards, and ensuring communities have the local conditions, social and spatial infrastructure, and opportunities they need to thrive. Drawing on existing critical frameworks and mapping key metrics through interactive workshops with residents and community representatives, we are aiming to shape a long-term strategy for monitoring and development for WCLA. If you're interested in taking part in the Decent Neighbourhoods research programme as a case study or want to learn more about this work, we’d love to hear from you! How should we define a #Decent #Neighbourhood #Standard? #Housing #Placemaking #Communities #DecentNeighbourhoods Simeon Shtebunaev Heather Noble Nicola Bacon Chinedu Ekechukwu Chris Smith Waheed Saleem BSc,FRSA,MGP Afzal Hussain DL Alan Fraser Joanna Lee-Mills Elizabeth Williams Kai Jackson Professor Guy Daly Anisha Kaur Smith Dominic Bradley Mike Leonard Ashley de Sousa James Prestwich Thea Raisbeck Sana Malik, Ph.D. Hannah Absalom Yoric Irving-Clarke Beverley Nielsen