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Housing the “Big Society”Phillip Blond
Director, ResPublica
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The Core Problems• The ECONOMIC problem
• The SOCIAL problem
• The CIVIC problem
• The POWER problem
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The Economic ProblemAssets have become concentrated
• The wealthiest half of households hold 91% of the UK’s total wealth
Source: ONS, Wealth in Great Britain – Main Results from the Wealth and Assets Survey 2006/08 (2009)
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The Economic ProblemGrowing income inequality (UK)
Index of rise in gross weekly earnings, full time males (1978-2008)Source: Stewart Lansley, “How Rising Inequality contributed to the crash”, Soundings, Spring 2010
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The Economic ProblemWages won’t deliver (US)
Over the long-term, US wages have stagnated in a time of growth
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The Economic ProblemWarning signs of a UK decoupling?
Male median wages have fallen behind GDP growth since the early 1970s
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The Economic ProblemLow-earners have seen less growth, and even decline, in wages (UK)
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The Social ProblemSocial capital is declining
• 97% of communities have become more socially fragmented over the past 30 years
Source: Changing UK (Dec 2008), BBC Report
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The Social ProblemFear of crime (UK)
Fear has a strong relationship with social trust
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Social trust (%)Es
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The Civic ProblemCivic engagement has decreased
• Only 31% of Britons now provide nearly 90% of all volunteer hours
Source: Third Sector Research Centre (2010)
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The Civic ProblemDecrease in civic participation (UK)
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The Power ProblemPower has pooled in the state
• Nearly three out of four Britons agree that “the state intervenes too much”
Source, David Halpern, “The Wealth of Nations” (2007)
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The Power Problem
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The DiagnosisProblems with the ‘left’ and ‘right’
• Both welfarism and the ‘monopolised market’ have encouraged bureaucracy and asset concentration
• The state and the market have squeezed out the ‘civic middle’, stripping it of capital and capacity
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Housing: Potential Issues• Retreat of the state from funding and regulation.
• The need for new solutions
• Meeting government policies and reflecting local communities
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Housing: Opportunities• In delivering the localism agenda: enablers and
investors
• As platforms for opening, extending and devolving public services
• As mutual models
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Localism• Local connection is essential
• Housing associations can work on behalf of communities: e.g. neighbourhood planning, economic development – Green Deal
• Support those with limited capacity and capital
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Localism
Tübingen User-Led Housing: a self-commissioned neighbourhood
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LocalismTübingen User-Led Housing• Self-commissioned, self-designed plot by plot
neighbourhood development • Working in labour and design partnership• Active participation in delivering solutions rather
than ‘top-down’ standardised delivery
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• Housing providers are well placed for broader public service delivery
• Platform the ‘right to challenge’: ‘right to buy’
• Offer platform for community-based enterprise and investment: Skill Generating :-Work Programme
Association led Investment
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Active Citizen Developers
Hørsholm Waste-to-Energy: a neighbourhood clean-tech incinerator
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Hørsholm Waste-to-Energy• Community not-for-profit asset – shared wins
• Incinerator waste-to-energy plant heats 10,000 homes: cuts heating bills by 30%
• Energy cost savings raise house valuations
Bottom up Procurement
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Opening Public Services
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Opening Public ServicesPoplar HARCA• Big business, but relevance through local governance
• Asset transfer of underused facilities: community centres now used for youth groups, health clinics, etc
• Managed by HA but input by and for locals
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Mutual Models• Does community-ownership and mutualism have a
role to play in housing?
• Increase accountability and transparency – and safeguard social mission through a “social dividend”
• Community empowerment
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Mutual Models
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Mutual Models• Anticipated ownership model: membership drawn
from tenants and staff – Rochdale Borough Wide Housing
• Developing new accountability membership framework
• Working together to reduce costs
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Housing the Big Society• Appeal to the local: be a platform for the Localism
Bill and encourage investment• Platform provision: open public services and offer
alternatives for delivery local platform for statutory services – Hubs : -St Georges - Birmingham
• Ground in the social: devolution of governance and assets
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The Future • Social housing as Social Enterprise• If its Public money has to be for the Public
Good• Housing no longer enough – that’s the base
not the high bar
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The New Standard • Economic – self and community build –
plaform for mass bottom up enterprise• Social – associate to create capital and skills• Civic – begin where people are - foster
relationships and fraternity• Power – change governance – go bottom up