Analysis: We Must Learn From the Housing Errors of the Past ; Green Spaces Could Soon Become a Compulsory Element of All New Housing Schemes in Birmingham. Here Lord Bill Morris, New Chair Elect of Midland Heart, Discusses the Importance of Good Homes in Creating Stronger, Healthier and Happier Communities

Summary

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As a young man growing up in Handsworth in the 1950s and 1960s, I saw first hand the importance of good quality houses and how they can help create solid communities. Post war, housing was a major social and political issue; with the baby boomer generation, the government knew it had to build in significant numbers to meet the continuous growth in demand.

And mistakes were made. Tower blocks and sprawling housing estates that were cheap to build created social isolation and economic ghettos. Long-standing communities were dismantled and tenants were remote from friends and family.

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Analysis: We Must Learn From the Housing Errors of the Past ; Green Spaces Could Soon Become a Compulsory Element of All New Housing Schemes in Birmingham. Here Lord Bill Morris, New Chair Elect of Midland Heart, Discusses the Importance of Good Homes in Creating Stronger, Healthier and Happier Communities

What was done by the government and planners then will take many years to put right.

In many senses, the challenge for society today is similar. There is a significant gap between supply and the rising demand for new homes, fuelled by an ageing and growing population.

Since the 1970s, th...

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