Housing Disadvantaged People? Insiders and Outsiders in French Social Housing

By Jane Ball
Between historic French revolutions and the modern riots, negotiated solutions to social dilemmas emerged. Despite progress in constitutional principles, complex local negotiations still ultimately determine who is housed. Local social landlords, mayors and employee and tenant representatives use their privileges to house their insiders: existing tenants, locals and employees, with rent insufficiently subsidized. ‘Insider Outsider’ theory is used for an economic analysis of exclusion in social housing allocation: its processes, institutional context, and stigmatizing effects. This highlights the spatial effects of nimbyism, excluding disadvantaged outsiders, and concentrating them in deprived areas. Simultaneously, urban regeneration reduced affordable housing stock and ‘social mix’ became a reason to refuse a social home.
History, comparative law, economic theory and local interviews with housing actors give a detailed picture of what happens in and around French social housing allocation for an interdisciplinary housing policy audience. Constitutional principles appear in an unfamiliar guise as negotiating positions, with the "right to property" supporting landlords and the "right to housing" supporting tenants. French debates about the function of social landlords are echoed across Europe and reflected in European policies concerning rights, and the exclusion of disadvantaged minorities.
Contents
1. Social Landlords and Insider Outsider Theory 2. Exploring the Function of Social Housing 3. The Historical Context: from Revolution to Rights 4. The Right to Housing in Context 5. Complex Institutions in the Grip of Change 6. Social Landlords and their Financing Problems 7. The Social Housing Allocation Process 8. Insiderness and Local Actors 9. Stigmatization and Outsiders 10. Housing Some of the Disadvantaged
Social housing appears to offer a solution for the housing of poor and disadvantaged people. The French "right to housing" offers poor and disadvantaged citizens priority in social housing allocation, and even a legal action against the State to obtain a social home. Despite this, France is suffering a long-lasting housing crisis with disadvantaged people having particular difficulties of access, often despite the efforts of local housing actors. This situation is affected by the European Court of Human Rights and EU decisions limiting diverse national housing and rental policies.
About the Author
Jane Ball is a senior lecturer at Sheffield University where she teaches several law courses concerning the organization of people on land. After 14 years in English legal practice she spent another 14 years researching the French housing scene, using an applied mix of public and private law, economic theory and empirical study.
Publishing September 2011 / Paperback: 978-0-415-55445-9 / £34.99

A copy of Jane's book is available for review. For further details please contact martin.mcnally@chester.ac.uk

Planning for the Just City

Members of the HSA are warmly invited to the First Civic University Lecture by Professor Susan Fainstein of Harvard University on Friday, 21 October 2011 at 5.30pm In Firth Hall, Firth Court, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN

In the first Civic University Lecture, Susan Fainstein will reflect on the intellectual and policy implications of her significant new book, The Just City. The concept of the "just city" is designed to encourage policy-makers to embrace a different approach to urban development and to challenge the academic community to move beyond critical analysis. The argument applies theoretical concepts about justice developed by contemporary philosophers to the concrete problems faced by urban planners and policymakers and argues that, despite structural obstacles, meaningful reform can be achieved at the local level.

Susan Fainstein is Professor of Urban Planning in the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. A leading authority on comparative urban public policy, urban redevelopment and planning theory, her books include: The Just City, The City Builders, Restructuring the City, and Urban Political Movements. Professor Keith Burnett, Vice Chancellor, University of Sheffield, states: "The Civic University initiative is central to our mission. The aim is to foster mutually beneficial interactions between civic and intellectual concerns, with an underlying aspiration to make a difference. This, the first Civic University Lecture, is part of this initiative."

Entry is free of charge but by ticket only. Book online at www.shef.ac.uk/whatson/justcity

Sarah Webb CBE

The Housing Studies Association is immensely saddened by the news that Sarah Webb, who recently stepped down as the Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Housing, has died.

Sarah touched the lives of many of our members with her commitment to housing, both as a vital practical concern in today’s society and as a subject of intellectual enquiry in its own right. Many of our members had the good fortune to work with Sarah directly, either at the CIH or through one of the other housing organisations that benefited from her talents.

Sarah was a strong supporter of the HSA. She contributed wisdom and a sense of practical reality to our annual conferences as a plenary speaker, and she helped foster close working links between the CIH and HSA. We are indebted to her support.

A full obituary and tributes from the housing sector can be read on the CIH’s website here www.cih.org/SarahWebb.htm



Housing Studies Association

9 September 2011

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