It is pertinent to recall observations made more than a century ago on the history of inequalities in socioeconomic conditions between social classes in the UK and their respective access to political and economic power:
The more closely any period of history is studied, the more clearly does it appear that the mistakes and troubles of an age are due to a false spirit, an unhappy fashion in thought or emotion, a tendency in the human mind to be overwhelmed by the phenomena of the time, and to accept those phenomena as the guide to conduct and judgement, instead of checking and criticising them by a reasoned standard of its own. [People] come to think that it is their business to explain, rather than to control the forces of the hour.5
One of the less well-publicised responses to the UK’s financial crisis of 2007–8 is that a number of UK organisations representing housing and neighbourhood interests at the ‘grassroots’ level saw the opportunity to raise discussion beyond a narrative that would focus solely on a ‘crisis’ and promote a broader debate about the holistic nature and accountability of the UK’s housing future.
An embryonic coalition was formed, informally termed the ‘Mutual Housing Alliance’,6 to collaborate on ways to promote an increase in practical opportunities for future local housing projects. There was an acceptance by members in this Alliance that each could have a discrete focus on what initiatives local people might wish to instigate at local levels – it could be facilitating housing to be collectively owned or managed (such as by co-operatives or trusts), or a focus on the building of new properties by individuals or by neighbourhood groups (such as with self-build or cohousing groups), or even simply to renovate and reuse buildings in disrepair. Yet it was also acknowledged that a collaboration of work between bodies would provide a complementary and common view on how the core accountability of all kinds of successful local activities should rest with the households and communities seeking the local change.
Members of the Mutual Alliance subsequently contributed to a variety of government initiatives and working parties instigated by both Labour and Conservative governments, and a narrative began to emerge demonstrating to a wider audience what ‘community-led’ activity represents at its heart. This was subsequently enshrined in definitions commissioned by members of the Alliance from the Building and Social Housing Foundation (BSHF)7 to confirm that ‘community-led’ housing is:
[where] people are involved in meeting their own housing needs and wants. The route taken depends on things like the nature of the demand, available resources, location and type of activity. Approaches encompass new build, regeneration and the use of existing buildings. Community-led housing groups may form on the basis of a geographical connection or something else they have in common [….] the ‘community-led housing’ sector supports people to decide how they want to live, and make it happen.8
The coherence between the common interests of different forms of activities and organisations within the ‘community-led housing sector’ was also clarified in a working definition of what principles constitute the practical workings of such projects:
The legal form and activities of each community-led housing scheme depend on the outcomes needed, but share common principles:
a)the community is integrally involved throughout the process in key decisions like what is provided, where, and for who. They don’t necessarily have to initiate the conversation, or build homes themselves;
b)there is a presumption that the community group will take a long-term formal role in the ownership, stewardship or management of the homes;
c)the benefits of the scheme to the local area and/or specified community group are clearly defined and legally protected in perpetuity.9
This understanding of what is intrinsic to local people’s housing and neighbourhood projects has subsequently informed other extensive work and collaborations with government parties, undertaken by a secondary grouping of bodies that were initial members of the Mutual Alliance. From 2017 a fourfold practical collaboration between the National Community Land Trust Network, the UK Cohousing Network, the Confederation of Co-operative Housing and Locality has created the ‘Community Led Homes’ alliance, and helped steer the recent political and financial support from central government provided through the Community Housing Fund.10 More comment on this Fund will be considered in later chapters, however it is salient to recognise that the Prospectus of the Community Housing Fund virtually repeats the definition of ‘community-led housing’ as given in the definitions above. The Prospectus stated that proposals for funding would be considered if they ensure that:
•meaningful community engagement and consent occurs throughout the development process (The community does not necessarily have to initiate and manage the process, or build the homes themselves, though some may do);
•the local community group or organisation owns, manages or stewards the homes and in a manner of their choosing;
•the benefits to the local area and/or specified community must be clearly defined and legally protected in perpetuity.11
Core motivations
To understand the kinds of core motivations that drive contemporary activities forward, information can be culled from a combination of information sources. These will include experiences from members of the original Mutual Housing Alliance and the current Community-Led Homes partnership; data from other comparable or associated UK bodies; national and international academic reports and different ‘advice notes’12 on community-led, collaborative or ‘self-organised’ housing projects; and views that come forward from other national and international networks linking local communities and their community developments.13
Table 1.1: Key drivers behind local people creating their own homes in the UK
| •to build new property for individuals, groups or neighbourhood organisations |
| •to extend choice and variety within local housing provision |
| •to provide affordable housing, for rent or sale, for allocation to local people |
| •to have a collective or communal ownership of dwellings by the residents |
| •to be influential over local housing management and maintenance services |
| •to meet a change in household needs (like ‘downsizing’ for senior residents) |
|
•to renovate and rehabilitate under-used or vacant
|