Urban renewal and the culture of conservatism: changing perceptions of the tower block and implications for contemporary renewal initiatives
The article is divided into two parts. In the first part, we examine the emergence of the tower block phenomenon and summarize the cause of its subsequent decline. The issue is important, for, as we argue, tower blocks have been used to discredit not only public housing, but state welfare provision in general. In the second part, we utilize our analysis of developments in social policy in the United Kingdom in the 1990s to generate a critique of housing renewal strategies. Although it is important not to read across simplistically between politics, cultural crit icism and policy failure, nevertheless with reference to tower blocks we argue there is a commonality between these three issues. By highlighting these links it is possible to show how many of the latest housing pro posals are influenced by a one-dimensional reading of 'modernity', accentuating the negative aspects and neglecting some of the positive attributes. As a consequence, the philosophies that now underpin housing development are, in many respects, regressive and unimagina tive.
British housing design
Housing Design Before 1919 The Interwar Period The Postwar Years Systems-Built Solutions Designing Outside the Dwelling The "Defensible Space" Debate The Promotion of Good Design User Participation in Design Designing for Specific Groups Current issues in Housing Design.
Rationing, Choice and Constraint: The Allocation of Public Housing in Glasgow
ABSTRACT Social segregation in public housing has usually been explained in institutional terms by reference to the policies and practices of the local authority. This paper draws on data from a household survey of new council tenants in Glasgow to demonstrate that the outcome of the rationing process cannot be attributed to factors originating at the level of the institution alone. The research examines stages of the allocation process, in particular the behaviour of applicants in expressing preferences and their propensity to reject offers, as well as institutional factors. It is suggested that household choice behaviour, which is related to income, is important in determining social patterns in council housing.