5 June 2014
Most of the finalists shortlisted for the £250,000 Wolfson Economics Prize have recommended lots of opportunities for more self/custom build in any future 21st century Garden Cities that are built.
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The shortlist of five – announced yesterday – includes a team from homelessness charity Shelter, three of the UK’s top planning consultancies, and a Maidstone based housing developer. All of them were responding to the challenge: “How would you deliver a new Garden City which is visionary, economically viable, and popular?”
All five will now work up their proposals, so that an overall winner can be selected in the autumn.
The Shelter entry is described as ‘the city that built itself’ and its proposal focuses on the Hoo Peninsula in North Kent, where it wants to see 15,000 affordable homes constructed – and nearly 2,000 of these would be set aside for self/custom builders. In its submission the team from Shelter say: “In addition to individual self-builders there is a growing movement of community-led
housing groups that seek to self-build collectively, many motivated by a desire to
create a supportive shared environment for their retirement years – or the desire for their kids to be able to share bigger gardens. In Germany, such groups are significant house builders and are actively supported. In our town they will find the opportunities denied them elsewhere, and will help foster community spirit and diversity early on”.
“We will actively promote opportunities to acquire plots for a variety of self-build models, and offer a range of financial options to assist with this. Our town will harness this huge pent up demand and allow thousands of young families to create affordable homes for themselves”.
The entry from planning consultancy Urbed also believes self/custom builders will play a large part in delivering the 70,000 homes it wants to see built. Its submission says: “The housing would be developed incrementally to create space for small developers and self-builders alongside the volume housebuilders in a process that recreates the way the great estates were built in London”.
Planning consultant Barton Wilmore sets out a ‘road map’ to deliver the new garden city, which initially involves raising public awareness and gathering wider political support for the new settlement. “The opportunity to be involved in the creation of a new city is something magical that is regularly reflected in the media through interest in self-build,” says it team. The Barton Wilmore entry argues that alongside local and regional builders, “self-build can become a key part of every Garden City.”
Chris Blundell of Maidstone-based Golding Homes also championed encouraging self/custom builders. His entry said: “The opportunity for households to build their own home fits in well with the sustainability and enterprise aspects of the garden city. Whilst the overarching design codes will have to be followed the ability to self-build will attract enterprising households. The garden city could even offer preferential access and terms for (serviced) self build plots.”
