Christian Reflections on Britain’s Housing Need, edited by Andrew Francis. Ekklesia (London 2016). Pbk. 138 pages. £11.99.
‘Now is the time’ was the call and mood of the launch of this book at Manchester Cathedral on 14 April. We were addressed by three of the authors of chapters as well as by Ekklesia staff. I was inspired by their combined determination to try to address the housing problem.
The Bishop of Manchester, David Walker, spoke first about a sense of belonging (chapter 1). He said that, ideally, a home ought to be exclusively ours – no hot-bedding as some migrant workers experience – and available to us when we need it – so no bed and breakfast accommodation, either, where people have to leave every morning. He wanted people to have security and protection – to know their possessions will be there on return and that they will not be harassed by landlords. A home should be affordable – a major theme of the whole book – and sustainable, able to provide what people need for themselves and their families even if one bedroom is not occupied every night.
Next to speak was Helen Woolley (chapter 6), an architect based in Sheffield, who grew up in Bournville, Birmingham. She described the benefits for workers of that village built for them by the Quaker, George Cadbury: a village green, a brook of water, good housing with a garden. She said that good quality housing and connected private and public green spaces were also evident in Saltaire (Titus Salt) and Port Sunlight (Lever Brothers). The Garden City Movement (Ebenezer Howard) carried forward these ideals in Letchworth, Welwyn, Telford and Milton Keynes. She bemoaned the modernist approach of building tower blocks which isolate people, have unused public green spaces, while children living on higher floors do not go out to play. She recognised the very real conflict between maintaining the Green Belt while new housing demand grows.
Last to speak was the book’s editor, Andrew Francis, who outlined the vision for action of the final chapter. He called for a national consensus on housing which includes a commitment to provide safe, affordable, secure and accessible housing for all, as well as a recognition that we need a mix of housing – council provided, housing associations, private rental and home-ownership. He called for a tax to be levied on owners who leave expensive properties empty, particularly in London, and so hyper-inflate all other properties in the area – including those at the lower end. He criticised the government’s ‘affordable’ purchase price figures (£450,000 in London and £250,000 elsewhere) as unrealistic, which many authors reiterate throughout the book. His last action point, entitled ‘A challenge to the churches’, reminds us that as churchgoers we are probably securely housed in a dwelling of our choice, either as owner-occupier or tenant, and he asked us to become aware of the housing situation in our own area and to support grass-roots organisations.
I was motivated to read the whole book but particularly enjoyed these three chapters. I also enjoyed ‘A history of British Housing Development’ (chapter 2), which describes the development of tenements in Scotland and terraced housing in England because great numbers of people needed to live near their work. I discovered more about squatting (p20), and learnt about hutting (p23), mouseholing (p24), Housing Action Trusts (p29) and ‘gentrification’ (p31). There are also good chapters describing the changing role of the local authority, the development of housing associations, the changing city landscape and Scottish rural housing.
This is an important and well constructed book, which encourages Christians to work with people of other faiths, as well as no religious belief, to address these housing issues adequately. It is up to date and talks about the awful housing problems that we now have, especially in our cities. Christian communities are challenged to look around them more carefully, to use their buildings more adventurously, to work with others more frequently and, probably – although it is not stated – to be grateful for the housing situation that we are in.
Valerie Clark has served on SOF’s steering committee and conference-organising groups. She now lives in Manchester and currently is co-clerk of her local Quaker Meeting.