Collateral damage? Transforming subprime slum dwellers into homeowners

Patricia Campbell's article entitled 'Collateral damage? Transforming subprime slum dwellers into homeowners' has been published in Housing Studies.
Patricia was supported by the HSA/HSCT bursary scheme and received editorial comments from members of the HSA Executive Committee. The article is published in volume 28(3), pages 453 - 472.

The Academy of Social Sciences confers the award of Academicians on HSA nominees

The Academy of Social Sciences has conferred the award of Academician on three HSA nominess; Malcolm Harrison, Alan Holmans and Keith Kirby. The Chair of the HSA Executive Committee, Ed Ferrari says, "These conferrals are all thoroughly well deserved and, moreover, I am pleased to note that the HSA is leading the way in nominating members of the policy and practitioner communities to the AcSS".

Lord Kelvin/Adam Smith E-MiNDS PhD Studentship

Educational & Health Impacts of Socio-Ethnic Migration & Neighbourhood Dynamics in Scotland (E-MiNDS)

This project will achieve a step-change in the scientific rigour applied to ethnicity research. Applying cutting-edge quantitative techniques to a unique combination of high-quality Scottish datasets, we shall open-up new avenues for ethnicity/inequality-research, and develop novel social-statistical methods that will have applications in other contexts. We shall follow 270,000 individuals over a twenty-year period, linking the greatly-underutilised Scottish Longitudinal Study (SLS) to a rich combination of data on neighbourhood composition, health, house prices and education. This will allow us to map-out the individual life-trajectories and health outcomes of persons identified as Catholic in 1991, compare these trajectories with those of persons from different ethnic/religious backgrounds, and shed light on questions about the extent to which long-term discrepancies in social mobility and health outcomes are driven by ethnicity/religion and/or neighbourhood effects. 

Scholarship details:

The LKAS E-MiNDS (“Educational & Health Impacts of Socio-Ethnic Migration & Neighbourhood Dynamics in Scotland”) scholarship includes a student stipend of £13,726 per 2 annum, plus a fee waiver, plus £5,300 per annum for conferences attendance and research costs. The student will be based in Urban Studies, University of Glasgow, and be linked to the ESRC LDOES project (Location Dynamics, Owner-occupation and Ethnicity in Scotland). It is anticipated that the first year of the 4-year studentship will involve a substantial quantitative research training element, leading to a research methods Masters degree (e.g. MRes Urban Research). For further information contact Professor Gwilyn Pryce gwilyn.pryce@glasgow.ac.uk 

UK Housing Review 2013

The UK Housing Review, by Hal Pawson and Steve Wilcox, published by the CIH is available for download from here.

News from JRF

CALLS FOR PROPOSALS
Poverty focussed review of housing organisations strategic and business plans
This project will explore where poverty fits within the strategies, policies and business plans of local authorities, housing associations and private landlords. For further details click here

Links between housing and poverty over the life course
This call is for a critical review of evidence that will consider how housing of all tenure types can mitigate or exacerbate poverty. This includes the likelihood of people being in poverty and exiting it; as well as what aspects of housing act to mitigate or exacerbate poverty. Further information is available here

PUBLICATIONS
Innovative financing of affordable housing
Kenneth Gibb, Duncan Maclennan and Mark Stephens examine what can we learn from international and UK best practice that could help support the expanded financing of affordable housing supply?
In a challenging economic climate, innovation is needed to stretch limited public subsidy and increase private contributions to help deliver additional affordable housing. This study:

• explores emerging themes in the financing of affordable housing;
• highlights promising policies from the UK and abroad that provide innovative funding ideas to increase supply;
• concludes that long-term housing policy needs to address market failures and permanently reduce housing market volatility, which would mean re-examining housing taxation and the safety net for vulnerable home-owners, as well as supporting the rented sector’s wider market role.

The report summary is available here

Changes to affordable housing in London and implications for delivery - Ben Harrison, Joanna Wilson and Jenifer Johnson
The demand for property, the mix of tenures and households, the difference in affordability of renting or buying, and the levels of acute housing need, all distinguish the London housing market from England as a whole. These have major implications for the delivery of affordable housing.
This Viewpoint:

• summarises a number of relevant housing indicators;
• sets out the key housing policy reforms undertaken by the Coalition Government; and
• explores the implications of these for London practitioners;
• argues that London needs a new, sustainable delivery model for new housing, underpinned by clear definitions of 'affordability' and 'housing need'.

The report summary is available here

The links between housing and poverty -
Rebacca Tunstall et al. examine how housing can mitigate or exacerbate the impact of poverty on people's lives.Poverty and low incomes prevent people from accessing potential housing options, and make others hard to sustain.
This study analyses the past decade of UK evidence to explore:

• the relationship between housing circumstances and the experience of poverty;
• the relative importance of housing cost, quality and location and other factors in the impact of poverty on people's lives; and
• the role of housing in enabling people to take up employment and increase income from work.

Report summary available here

 

News from the Housing and Communities Research Network at the University of Birmingham

Upcoming seminars at University of Birmingham

The Housing and Communities Research network are hosting the following free seminars:

• Localism and Housing - 2 current research perspectives on Tuesday 7th May 2013 (4.15 - 5.45). Richard Lang, Plowden Research Fellow will present on ‘Bringing real localism into practice through co-operative housing governance’ and David Mullins will present on ‘Putting the Social Back into Housing - Learning from Localism’.
• Tackling Anti-Social Behaviour - Reflecting on research for Peabody on Thursday 4th July 2013 (4.15 - 5.45). Chris Allen, Ozlem Young and Kath Farrow will discuss the findings of recent research into Anti-Social Behaviour for the social housing provider Peabody.

For more information on either seminar visit the web page for the research group Homes and Communities research network

Recent research from the Homes and Communities Research Network

A new paper from David Mullins and Tom Moore (University of St Andrews) on ‘Scaling up or going viral? Comparing self-help housing and community land trust facilitation'. For further information and to download the paper go to Scaling up or going viral

A Visiting Fellow from Japan, Yoshinobu Kikuchi will visit the University of Birmingham for six months from June 2013 to work with David Mullins on the Empty Homes projects in England. For further go to TSRC Visiting Fellow

Dr Richard Lang from WU Vienna University of Economics and Business in Austria joins the Third Sector Research Centre and Housing and Communities Group for three months from April 2013 to undertake research on 'Bringing real localism into practice through co-operative housing governance. For further details go to 2013 William Plowden Fellowship

City Futures Research Centre Officially rated a top performing team

The City Futures Research Centre is celebrating the ‘5’ rating 'well above world standard' on Urban and Regional Planning recently conferred on the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in the 2012 Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) evaluation. ERA assesses research quality within Australia's higher education institutions using a combination of indicators and expert review by committees comprising experienced, internationally-reputed experts. UNSW was the only Australian university rated ‘5’ on Urban and Regional Planning in 2012.
 

News from Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research

NEW OUTPUTS
Equity Release amongst older home owners
There is increasing interest in the role the use of equity release products can play in coping with some of the pressures of an ageing population. This study analyses what we already know about the use of equity release products by older homeowners to identify what might it be valuable to research further.
The scoping study reviews our understanding and knowledge from research on the use (or not, in most cases) of equity release products by older homeowners. It pulls together findings from the existing literature, reviews different data sets and draws on stakeholder discussions to identify what is already known about equity release in later life; what is missing from the current evidence base and the key research questions that need tackling in relation to likely future policy directions.
For more details and downloads go to Equite Release amongst older home owners
 
International review of land supply and planning systems
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has just published an international review of land supply and planning systems conducted by CCHPR, looking at what works and whether successful mechanisms from other countries could be transferred to the UK context. The review suggests that land supply is a key issue contributing to housing market volatility and problems of housing affordability in the UK.

The three main messages from the research are:

• There is no one single measure that will solve the problem – all countries struggle with balancing the need to constrain urban sprawl with the need to build sufficient homes to keep housing (more) affordable.
• But some countries, while having hot spots with high demand for housing and pressure on urban boundaries, do provide adequately outside these high pressure areas.
• Successful countries appear to be much more pro-active in the land market than the UK.

The role of the private rented sector in preventing homelessness: identifying good practice and the impact of policy change
The Oak Foundation has commissioned research that focuses on good practice that is demonstrated through Oak funded projects and looks more broadly at other successful practices and models

Support in the preparation of a housing strategy for the State of Jersey
The States of Jersey has commissioned CCHPR to provide support to its embryonic Strategic Housing unit in the preparation of an island wide, cross tenure Housing Strategy. The project comprises a series of papers for discussion with officers and the relevant Ministers between November 2012 and April 2013, leading to the production of a public Consulation Paper for circulation in May and a final Strategy Paper for debate in the States Assembly in June/July 2013.

Impact of welfare reform on housing associations – 2012 Baseline report
The National Housing Federation has commissioned Ipsos MORI and Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research to assess how welfare reform impacts across the housing association sector in England.
The first component of the research programme is to establish baseline data and understand pre-emptive behaviour change before the reforms come into force. This will be a precursor to monitoring impact after April 2013, up to March 2014. To download the report go to Welfare Reform Impact Assessment

Evaluation of the FirstStop information and advice initiative for older people: findings 2011/2012
A comprehensive information and advice service enabling older people to better plan ahead for their future housing and care needs is a key requirement if Britain is to cope successfully with its ageing society. The evaluation of FirstStop shows how it is helping older people to make difficult decisions about their housing and care. To download the report go to FirstStop Evaluation

Changing the profile of social housing
New analysis by CCHPR models the likely impact of allocating a larger proportion of social housing to working households. The analysis draws on CORE data to look at the implications for different groups of housing applicants. It concludes that giving greater priority to people in work is likely to be at odds with allocating to those in greatest need. To download the report go to Changing the profile of social housing

NEW PROJECTS
Evaluation of the Housing and Other Benefit Measures in the Social Rented Sector (social sector size criteria and the benefit cap)
The DWP recently announced that CCHPR, together with Ipsos MORI, have been commissioned by the DWP to evaluate housing benefit changes in the social rented sector.
The size criteria for the social rented sector, introduced in April 2013, are part of a range of welfare reform measures, including the household benefit cap, to reduce expenditure and improve work incentives. Social tenants of working age who under-occupy will lose either 14% or 25% of their eligible housing benefit, depending on whether they have one or two or more spare rooms.
The evaluation seeks to understand the impact of the size criteria on claimants, landlords and other stakeholders and to explore how households respond to the reduction in their benefits.

Reselling Shared Ownership properties after improvements
This short research project has been commissioned by Thames Valley Housing Association in order to examine the practice of reselling shared ownership homes after the owner has undertaken (and paid for) improvements to their home. Further details available here.

Exploring perspectives on market based mechanisms for development
This project is a collaboration between CCHPR, the Department of Geography and the Office of External Affairs and Communications at the University of Cambridge. Further details available here.


    

News from CHR St Andrews

CHR St Andrews launches new network
The Centre For Housing Research at the University of St Andrews have launched a new network. INTEGRATE: International Network on Generational Transfers Research. The network aims to bring together academics, practitioners, user groups and others interested in the transfer of wealth and transmission of poverty. For more details and to sign up please go to INTEGRATE 

British Academy research grant
Dr Tom Moore has been awarded a research grant by the British Academy. The project is titled ‘The influence of spatial context on the social impact, sustainability and democratic governance of community land trusts’ and will begin in April 2013. Three in-depth case studies will be conducted in order to identify the key local attributes that support and influence the formation, impact and democratic governance of community land trusts in England. For further information please contact Tom at: tm55@st-andrews.ac.uk.  

HSA annouces the Valarie Karne Memorial Prize

The Housing Studies Association is pleased to announce the introduction of the Valerie Karne annual memorial prize for the best paper by an early career housing academic.
Valerie was a housing researcher of compassion and conviction. She believed in the power of research to challenge and change policy by exposing the injustices of life in urban society. She was also a passionate advocate of community engagement and action.
She took her doctorate at the University of Birmingham on housing for older people. After working as a research fellow at York University she returned to Birmingham, where she lectured until 1984. She then spent a decade as Professor of Environmental Health and Housing at Salford University, before taking up the position of Professor of Housing Studies at the Manchester University in 1994.
Valerie's interests were wide-ranging and her achievements many. One her most notable contributions was her joint authorship of Race, Class and State Housing (1987). Written with Jeff Henderson, this seminal work exposed the processes of institutional racism in public housing. Reviewing the book for Critical Social Policy in 1988, Norman Ginsberg recognised the work as "more comprehensive, sophisticated and perhaps radical in its implications than anything done before."
All papers submitted by an early career researcher will be considered for the prize, but particular preference will be given to papers sharing Valerie's broad interests:

• race and housing
• housing standards and conditions
• homelessness
• housing management and governance
• comparative housing researchT

The Prize
The prize is financed through a bequest made by Valerie. The money will support the professional production and dissemination of the winning paper. It will be hosted on the HSA website as part of a new Valerie Karn paper series and disseminated through the HSA’s networks.
Submission
Submissions are welcomed from all early career researchers, including: Masters students, PhD students, newly qualified postdoctoral researchers, and junior researchers working outside academia. Papers should be between 4,000 and 8,000 words in length and submitted in Word format to David Robinson (d.robinson@shu.ac.uk) by 30th September 2013.
All submissions will be reviewed by a panel drawn from the executive of the Housing Studies Association and chaired by David Robinson. The winner of the Valerie Karn Prize 2013 will be announced in the week beginning 21st October 2013.