Understanding legislative interventions

Some broad comments were given in the opening to this publication on the UK's basic socio-political context in which its housing sector operates. These baldly stated:

• • that established and mainstream participants are at the core of local frameworks that plan for how needs are assessed and met;

• • that ‘open market’ practices currently dominate how innovations to services (and relationships) could be framed;

• • that the extent of any local demand for different forms of housing solutions is assumed to be unproven, or may only be present on a very modest scale;

• • that new community-based or self-provided solutions do not have the governance skills or practical expertise to take on the risks in driving new projects forward.

The previous chapter has, however, described in some substantial detail the kinds of innovations that local people have introduced to create the kinds of homes and neighbourhoods they want, developing new governance skills to drive projects forward that create sustainable homes for individual households, and created award-winning neighbourhoods and settlements in which new practices have been successfully integrated into daily and community life.

To what extent have such motivations and practices chimed with central and local policies? What will be considered is whether the motivations from local people to create local housing solutions currently feature in, or are supported by, ‘mainstream’ engagements. The consideration of these points will be principally undertaken though an examination of:

• • the extent to which central government legislation and policy has promoted opportunities for people to influence how their homes and neighbourhoods are provided; and

• • the shape and direction of policies at local government level.

Lastly, some consideration will also be given to the extent that support for local people to shape local homes and neighbourhoods currently involves an unresolved tension between any priority given to the affordability of local provision, and a focus on who is owed accountability for that local provision.

Central government legislation and policy

As noted in the Introduction, amidst all the recent government policy imperatives to improve standards and delivery in the nation's housing sector and its housing supply, there has been a sustained focus on augmenting the supply from established providers (such as private sector housebuilders or housing associations), rather than on generating changes in market conditions to encourage other activity to take place.