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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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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