Housing
Why we need renters’ unions
25 April 2019 People power can help fix the mess of the housing market, writes Jacob Stringer from London Renters Union
A natural history of Heygate Estate
28 March 2019 The redevelopment of a London council estate has led to the loss of a mature ‘urban forest’ - as well as hundreds of rented homes. Photos and text by Matthew Benjamin Coleman.
Housing cooperatives are more than an economic no-brainer. They offer our a communities a better future.
14 December 2018 They give us the opportunity to put power in the people's hands, writes Joe Barson.
In Community We Trust
20 November 2018 It's time for councils to put housing back in the hands of the people, writes Tom Chance.
The Irish government needs to stop protecting property developers and start looking out for its people
10 October 2018 Rents are soaring and the government is hand-in-glove with property moguls. Oliver Eagleton reports on the activists fighting for a fairer housing system.
Wealth inequality is skyrocketing and the housing market is out of control. It’s time to tax the land.
27 September 2018 Luke Murphy writes that wealth inequality, a poorly functioning housing market, an economy focused on unproductive investment and macroeconomic instability are all negative consequences of our current treatment of land within the UK economy
Can alternative models of ownership help solve the housing crisis?
18 September 2018 Conrad Bower reports on the radical housing initiatives challenging high rents and homelessness
To tackle rough sleeping, we need to combat the root causes
23 August 2018 The government's homelessness strategies are punitive and do nothing to help people in need, writes Joe Barson
Building the Future
8 August 2018 Innovative municipal projects are tackling local housing problems worldwide.
A government of property developers and landlords cannot solve the housing crisis
9 July 2018 Becka Hudson writes that the politicians charged with solving the housing crisis are in the pockets of the landlords and property developers who directly profit from it.
Grenfell Tower and the long crisis of social housing
13 June 2018 Council housing arose from the duty of the state to house its people. Grenfell Tower epitomises decades of dereliction of that duty. An excerpt from 'Municipal Dreams' by John Boughton.
Can people power beat the gentrifiers?
29 May 2018 Housing action group StART have taken on the property developers in London - and they're not done yet.
The housing crisis is one of political ideology. A radical response is the only ‘common sense’ solution.
7 March 2018 Decades of deregulation and market mismanagment is responsible for the UK's housing crisis. Darren Baxter argues that it's time for some radical solutions.
Turn unused office space into housing support for the homeless
3 March 2018 Unused office space is taking over our cities, whilst the homeless population is skyrocketing. Jim McGregor writes that it's time to put those properties to better use.
‘We have a history of turning tragedy into triumph.’
2 March 2018 Anu Shukla speaks to the Kensington residents fighting back against gentrification and housing crisis, months after the fire at Grenfell.
Stormzy, Grenfell and what it means to be a ‘threat’
24 February 2018 The artist is giving a vital platform to a new generation of voices pointing out the deep hypocrisy in which crimes get punished and which get rewarded. By Remi Joseph-Salisbury and Laura Connelly
Berliners versus Google: The latest battle against gentrification in Kreuzberg
11 January 2018 Javier Pérez De La Cruz writes about the working class Berlin neighbourhood wrung dry by gentrifiers.
The Great Housing Swindle
7 December 2017 Michael Coates reviews a new film revealing the shocking state of housing inequality in the UK.
We need to change the narrative around social housing
13 November 2017 We need to tackle the patronising ideology that lets Tory think-tanks sneer at social tenants, writes Emma Dent Coad
Beware the automated landlord
9 September 2017 Tenants of the automated landlord are effectively paying two rents: one in money, the other in information for data harvesting, writes Desiree Fields
Grenfell two months on: still living in limbo
14 August 2017 Survivors of the fire are still relying on thousands of community volunteers, writes Daniel Renwick - but the failed council is plotting a comeback
Build it yourself: a growing housing alternative
25 July 2017 Nick Dowson looks at the new wave of co-ops and community groups where people are building their own truly affordable homes
Power to the renters: Turning the tide on our broken housing system
17 July 2017 Heather Kennedy, from the Renters Power Project, argues it’s time to reject Thatcher’s dream of a 'property-owning democracy' and build renters' power instead
On the ground at Grenfell, residents’ suspicion of a cover-up isn’t going away
16 July 2017 Hsiao-Hung Pai meets people affected by the fire, and finds sadness and suffering mixed with a continuing wariness of the official investigations
The Grenfell public inquiry must listen to the residents who have been ignored for so long
11 July 2017 Councils handed housing over to obscure, unaccountable organisations, writes Anna Minton – now we must hear the voices they silenced
A beautiful message to the Grenfell community, from the housing estates of East London
29 June 2017 ’We believe in you. We are with you. We will never forget.’ Grenfell solidarity sweeps East London in mass banner drops from housing estates
Grenfell Tower residents evicted from hotel with just hours’ notice
23 June 2017 An urgent call for support from the Radical Housing Network
In the aftermath of this disaster, we must fight to restore respect and democracy for council tenants
19 June 2017 Glyn Robbins says it's time to put residents, not private firms, back at the centre of decision-making over their housing
After Grenfell: ending the murderous war on our protections
19 June 2017 Under cover of 'cutting red tape', the government has been slashing safety standards. It's time for it to stop, writes Christine Berry
Why the Grenfell Tower fire means everything must change
18 June 2017 The fire was a man-made atrocity, says Faiza Shaheen – we must redesign our economic system so it can never happen again
The Grenfell fire must be the end of this Tory government – our lives are not safe in their hands
18 June 2017 When fire safety has become a privilege for the rich, it’s time to stop austerity and fund emergency mass works to raise standards immediately, writes Jane Shallice
Rents are rising – so the renters are rising too
4 April 2017 Housing campaigners' gains in Bristol are spurring on a national movement to build a renters' union, writes Stuart Melvin
Reclaiming Holloway Homes
21 February 2017 The government is closing old, inner-city jails. Rebecca Roberts looks at what happens next
Social housing not social cleansing: the theatre group touring London estates to resist evictions
30 January 2017 Emma Snaith speaks with directors Emer Mary Morris and Nina Scott about the power of theatre to encourage community resistance to estate demolitions.
Who owns our land?
28 January 2017 Guy Shrubsole gives some tips for finding out
New Cross fights new wave of housing privatisation
18 November 2016 Lewisham residents object to a new trend in local authority housing developments
How to win a rent strike
23 October 2016 Social networks are stronger than management hierarchies. David Dahlborn describes how the UCL rent strike won
The Divide: ‘must-watch’ documentary
28 July 2016 Rosanna Hutchings from campaign group Renters' Rights London explains why they hosted a public screenings of this documentary
The resistible rise of urban dispossession in Europe
30 May 2016 Stuart Hodkinson traces the effects of the housing crisis across Europe in light of a new report, 'Resisting Evictions Across Europe'
Housing is a mental health issue
30 May 2016 Emma Snaith reports on the Focus E15 demonstration highlighting the link between a lack of decent social housing and poor mental health
Hiding homelessness: one family’s fight against ‘gatekeeping’
12 May 2016 Izzy Koksal reports on a campaign that shows how councils are using dirty tricks to deny housing help to people in need
End of the road for social housing?
22 February 2016 Bob Colenutt looks at the disastrous consequences of the Housing and Planning Bill, which if passed will be the most significant change in the history of social housing
Emma and Bobby face eviction despite doing nothing wrong
23 November 2015 Emma* tells us about her experience renting in London, the impact on her child and how she plans to fight back
Housing gains in Spain
25 August 2015 Tom Youngman reports from Madrid on the Spanish housing movement fighting evictions and campaigning for the right to housing for all
Living co-operatively: everyday dissent
19 June 2015 We go beyond protesting against the Tories' housing crisis, writes Amy Corcoran – we can start to construct co-operative alternatives
Sweets’ dreams
1 June 2015 Families on the Sweets Way housing estate have lost plenty – but have also learnt the power of collective action, says Liam Barrington-Bush
The Aylesbury estate: the latest front in the battle against social cleansing
16 February 2015 Morgan Meaker speaks to residents and campaigners fighting the London estate's demolition
Bursting the bubble: say no to MIPIM
5 October 2014 Andy Edwards is part of the movement challenging the world’s biggest property fair as it comes to London
Social housing not social cleansing
1 August 2014 Communities affected by the government’s housing policies are coming together to resist them, writes Vickie Cooper
London: not for sale
11 March 2014 As the world's biggest property compaines meet to carve up our cities we must continue to fight back, writes Christine Haigh
