Reflections on the normalization of poor quality in England’s low-income housing

It is universally acknowledged that there is a problem with housing in England, as is also the case in countries and cities across the world. Whilst the government has conceded in policy literature (MHCLG, 2020) that price increases have led to an entrenchment of inequality in the UK, they have also accepted that the new homes being provided are often of too low a standard. Meanwhile, a recent policy document (DLUHC, 2022a) was published in response to the millions of private rental tenants paying market rent to live in homes the government considers unfit for twenty-first-century living.

Less routinely discussed are these present circumstances about those from which they have emerged. The UK’s post-war house-building program – of which a significant proportion was social housing – has been described by scholars such as King and Crewe (2014) as one of its government’s greatest successes, and indeed between the years 1951 and 1981 state-built housing made up 29 percent of the total improvement in low-income housing quality (Tunstall, 2020, 13). However, despite such a profound contribution to social progress, its built legacy has often been portrayed in negative terms, including by those with significant influence.

Also Read: National Planning Policy Framework