STEVE TIESDELL (1964-2011)

Dr Steve Tiesdell, Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at the University of Glasgow and one of the UK’s leading academic urban designers, died on 30 June 2011, aged 47.

Steve's full obituary provided by David Adams, University of Glasgow can be found on the Housing Studies Association website
http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/chp/hsa/tiesdell.htm

HSA 2011 Conference Housing in Hard Times: Class, poverty and social exclusion, conference papers
Papers from this year's HSA conference are now available and can be found at:
http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/chp/hsa/spring11/papers.htm

CONSULTATIONS

Consultation on Green Paper – towards a Common Strategic Framework for EU research and innovation funding
The HSA has recently responded to an EU consultation on a Green Paper for its future Research & Development strategy. The HSA response was based on representations received from HSA members. Thanks to those who responded. The response can be downloaded from the HSA website: http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/chp/hsa/EU_Green_Paper_HSA_response%20(2).pdf
The consultation docoment is available from http://ec.europa.eu/research/csfri/index_en.cfm?pg=documents

NEWS FROM CHR, ST ANDREWS

Housing in Hard Times 2011 Housing Studies Association Conference
The 2011 Housing Studies Association conference organised by Kim McKee (CHR, St Andrews) and Jenny Muir (QUB), provided a critical forum for discussing the impact of the economic downturn on housing policy and practice. The conference organised on the theme of Housing in Hard Times: class, poverty and social exclusion, attracted nearly 100 delegates and over 65 papers from across academia, policy and practice. Keynotes were delivered by Prof. Ian Cole (Sheffield Hallam), Prof. Chris Hamnett (KCL), Mr Andy Milne (SURF), Dr Gerry Mooney (Open University), Dr Kirsteen Paton (Glasgow), and Dr Jackie Smith (Shelter). Papers are now available on the conference website: http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/chp/hsa/spring11/index.htm

Kim McKee leads response to the Scottish Government's regeneration discussion document
Glasgow and West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations (GWSF) have launched their response to the Scottish Government's Regeneration Discussion Document: 'Building a Sustainable Future'. The response, led by Dr Kim McKee (CHR), emphasises the pivotal role Community-Controlled Housing Associations (CCHAs) play as community anchors, and the social and economic value they add through their regeneration activities. Moreover, it underlines the importance of area-based interventions in tackling concentrated poverty in Scotland's most deprived communities. To access the full report please see the GWSF website: http://www.gwsf.org.uk/uploads/GWSFregenmay2011webversion.pdf

The Social Dynamics of Neighbourhood, Early Career Symposium
Our recent early-career symposium organised by CHR PhD student Alice Oldfield on ‘The Social Dynamics of Neighbourhood’ was very successful, providing a lively and stimulating discussion for participants. The one-day event attracted around 20-early career researchers from across the UK and beyond. Drawing on national and international case studies, the presentations offered interesting insights into how neighbourhoods simultaneously influence and are influenced by a range of actors.
Prof. Ade Kearns (University of Glasgow) provided a thought-provoking plenary, which was then followed by early-career presentations from: Marie Gibert (Paris Sorbonne); Rob Craig (Aberdeen); Carol McKenzie (Heriot-Watt); Gerald Aiken (Durham); and Colleen Rowan (Glasgow).

NEWS FROM THE BUILDING AND SOCIAL HOUSING FOUNDATION

Self-help housing
BSHF has published a report examining the multiple benefits that self-help housing can provide to communities. Self-help housing involves local community groups bringing empty properties back into use, and the benefits can include the creation of work and training opportunities, building of local communities and support for neighbourhood regeneration.
The work was undertaken in partnership with Professor David Mullins of the Third Sector Research Centre.
The report is available to order or for free download from the BSHF website:
http://www.bshf.org/published-information/publication.cfm?thePubID=2F9EC046-15C5-F4C0-991896202739F469

Housing benefit modelling
BSHF has published analysis assessing how changes in the labour market could impact upon Housing Benefit claimant numbers in the UK. If the modelled relationship continues to hold, by the middle of next year there will be almost 250,000 more Housing Benefit recipients than current government estimates suggest. These differences would impact on the level of expenditure on Housing Benefit: expenditure would be £400 million higher than government forecasts in 2011/12, rising to £1.2 billion higher than forecast for 2012/13.
The report is available to order or for free download from the BSHF website: http://www.bshf.org/published-information/publication.cfm?thePubID=4E36E822-15C5-F4C0-9910CF24FAAC301E

NEW BOOKS

Understanding Housing Policy, Second Edition, by Brian Lund, Policy Press. ISBN-10: 184742631X ISBN-13: 978-1847426314 http://www.policypress.co.uk Price: £22.99
The second edition of Understanding Housing Policy has been completely revised and updated and includes a new chapter on the political processes involved in the construction and delivery of housing policies.
The new edition:
reviews a number of theoretical perspectives helpful in understanding the normative dimensions of housing policy;
examines explanations of policy development and implementation processes;
explores the development of housing policy in the United Kingdom;
contains a chapter on comparative housing policy;
examines a number of contemporary housing problems:affordability; homelessness; low demand and neighbourhood deprivation; overcrowding; multi-occupation; ‘decent’ homes and‘sustainable’ housing;
devotes a chapter to the relationship between housing and social justice;
includes an assessment of the impact of New Labour’s housing policies and the policy orientation of the Conservative/Liberal Democrat Coalition.
Updates are available at the author’s website: http://housingpolicy.moonfruit.com

Housing and inequality – A new CIH book in the Practice Studies series. Edited by Isobel Anderson and Duncan Sim.
The UK is a much more unequal society than it was 30 years ago. Over the same period, housing tenure has also been transformed, with a much larger proportion owning their own home and having access to the assets resulting from soaring property values. But where does this leave the one third of society who struggle to maintain their living standards? Many are living in social rented housing, but many too are in the private rented sector, and even owner-occupation has its share of poor households.
The links between housing and social inequality are complex and this book aims to untangle them for the reader. A range of contributors, drawing from their own research, cover topics such as:
• housing and economic inequality
• concentrated poverty in social housing estates
• neighbourhoods and estate regeneration
• whether mixed communities help tackle inequality
• inequality over the life course
• homelessness
• migrants, housing and inequality
• disabled people and their need for accessible housing.
As well as chapters which set the context for discussions about inequality and housing, and a concluding chapter on what a more equitable housing policy might look like, Alan Murie provides an overarching chapter on theprospects for housing policy and inequality. Several chapters also provide international comparisons, especially with the European Union.
The book is both a contribution to an important debate, and an excellent source for students, researchers and practitioners who want to understand why housing plays such an important part - both in creating inequality and in driving the policies that aim to reduce it.
Housing and inequality is £21.00 for HSA and CIH members and £30.00 for HSA and CIH non-members.
For further details about CIH Publications, please visit www.cih.org/publications

British Academy small grant: travel to school and housing markets

Ed Ferrari recently won a British Academy small grant to undertake a short project looking at the relationship between travel to school and housing markets in the UK and US. The project aims to collect some baseline comparative microdata from cities in the UK and US and undertake some preliminary analysis in collaboration with Professor Marc Schlossberg of the University of Oregon. For further details contact e.t.ferrari@sheffield.ac.uk

News from the Building and Social Housing Federation (BSHF)

Energy efficiency study

BSHF is been supporting a longitudinal study by Metropolitan Housing Partnership on the impact of energy efficiency features in new and retrofitted homes. The first report from the three year study, called ‘Homes of Our Times’, has recently been published and is available for download from MHP: Homes of Our Times The report suggests that there is a worrying gap between designed performance and the actual performance that customers receive. Up to half of residents were unaware of the low and zero carbon technologies (LZCT) in their homes. This initial report assesses whether residents were achieving intended savings, emitting less carbon and using less energy as a result of their greener homes. Evidence presented in the report demonstrates the pressing need for better and clearer engagement and communication to raise awareness of how the homes and technologies work and what residents need to do in order to benefit from them both in terms of energy and financial savings.

Regeneration Inquiry

BSHF’s submission to the Communities and Local Government Select Committee’s inquiry on regeneration drew on academic research into the Housing Market Pathfinder programme. The work, carried out by former BSHF CASE student, Andrea Armstrong, highlighted the challenges that future regeneration efforts will face, particularly in areas that have experienced repeated attempts at regeneration policies and strategies over a period of decades. BSHF Evidence to Select Committee on Regeneration

Welfare Reform – Public Bill Committee

Continuing the work started by its Consultation at Windsor Castle on the subject of Support with Housing Costs, in June 2010, BSHF has submitted evidence to the Public Bill Committee for the Welfare Reform Bill. The evidence drew attention to the fact that the specification of the housing component of Universal Credit (clause 11) is very broadly drawn, potentially granting substantial powers to ministers to change how it is calculated without further parliamentary scrutiny. It also highlighted the need for the design of Universal Credit to be coordinated with wider housing policy (such as the introduction of Affordable Rent), to create a coherent approach. Public Bill Committee evidence

Second ISA Forum of Sociology, August 1 - 4, 2012

Research Committee 43 (Housing and the Built Environment) of the ISA (International Sociological Association) is hosting a session at the Buenos Aries, Argentina ISA 2nd Forum of Sociology Conference. Details are at the website above. Please note that general papers on housing research will be considered and not just those in relation to Latin America. Abstracts can be submitted to any of the the named programme co-ordinators. Further details are available from http://www.isa-sociology.org/buenos-aires-2012/rc/rc.php?n=RC43