This week, RIBA has launched its Foundations for the Future report, which sets out a new delivery model for social housing.
The delivery model detailed in the report is public sector-led and would see a mix of social rent and market sale homes built on zero-cost public land. All revenue from market sales would be reinvested in further publicly-owned sites to create an almost self-sustaining social housing programme.
While discussions take place on delivery models, it’s an opportune time to think about and reflect upon best practice in this sector, a sector that is as important as ever.
We asked Paul Karakusevic, director of Karakusevic Carson Architects and author of Public Housing Works, where the debate stands today.
Where are we at with the design of social housing?
When it comes to designing social housing, Paul argues that we are in a new era, where important lessons from the past are being absorbed and combined with sustainable urban approaches to create high-quality dwellings and neighbourhoods.
Innovative new building typologies have been developed to enable higher urban densities and create streetscapes that can incorporate civic, social and mixed-uses at the heart of local communities.
These innovations mean that great social housing does not need to be predictable in form and layout, nor should it be set apart from the rest of the city. One of the great lessons of the post-war years in particular is that simply building islands of generic housing stock and repeated types in isolated areas does not work, says Paul.
He continues: “Great social housing comes in all shapes and sizes and thrives within both a continuous and varied urban environment. For the design of homes, it means enhancing connections and considering relationships, for example between a dwelling’s ground floor and streetscape, and that street’s connection to nearby services and amenities.”
“As designers, we always consider where and how a building meets the ground, the design and placement of doors and entrances and whether its location provides an opportunity to incorporate mix and activity such as that for local workspace or community rooms and community kitchens.”
“On many of our projects we have developed a number of mixed-use buildings, both large and small apartment buildings, that can successfully integrate community and commercial uses at ground, while accommodating a variety of homes on upper levels. Elsewhere we have developed innovative and hard-working open and closed courtyard blocks and linear street-facing forms that can successfully deliver homes at high density, while also supporting gardens, quiet zones, and pedestrian spaces.”
Solving the high-density challenge
Intelligent design and the refinement of successful, contextually-responsive dwelling typologies can help mitigate the challenges of high-density modern housing and its impact on the townscape.
Through rigorous development and testing, Karakusevic Carson Architects investigates how smaller clusters of apartments around lifts and stair cores can be grouped to allow for higher ratios and numbers of dual-aspect apartments. This can increase the number of cores, but conversely reduces corridor areas and horizontal servicing and distributes more of the floorspace to dwellings, ensuring costs can be offset. This approach can also improve life and comfort across the building, from the arrival sequence, the communal spaces, to the individual homes.
The articulation and modulation of housing is key to creating legible, yet inviting, streets and neighbourhoods, Paul argues.
Buildings with carefully considered proportions, particularly at ground and first floor level, with thoughtfully articulated elevations, expressed rhythm in its features, animated rooflines and confident handling at corners and important spaces all provide interest and contribute to the enjoyment of the urban realm.
High quality external materials, textures, and landscape strategies can ensure a relationship to local heritage, townscape and topography and create a stronger sense of place.
Striving to achieve the best possible level of residential amenity is also central to the Karakusevic Carson Architects design approach.
“We know that many social residents tend to be in their homes for a longer period, staying in one place for a decade or more, and so getting the layout right is fundamental to improve life chances,” Paul says. “Many of our public sector clients mandate a high proportion of dual aspect homes, allowing passive strategies for achieving light and the circulation of air in the home.”
“Differing orientations enable light into the home across different times of the day and can assist in cooling through natural cross ventilation. Maximising dual aspect also allows for a variety of views outwards and means that residents can exercise choice in which part of the home to use depending on adjacent activity, noise, or temperature.”
Listening to the community voice
Over the past 15 years in the UK, Paul would argue the process of regeneration and renewal has been overhauled to recognise past bad practice and lost opportunities and to empower community voices to have a say about their own homes and neighbourhoods.
“The role of residents in the design and delivery of social housing has never been more crucial or had so much potential in helping to determine the right outcomes,” he says.
“Building rapport and co-designing with diverse residents and community stakeholders, we have tailored new homes to respond to local needs and site conditions.”
All neighbourhoods should be able to express their own identity, but also benefit from being an integral part of the city in contrast to the conscious ‘otherness’ sometimes experienced in the landscape of the post-war estate. The best contemporary master planning and urban frameworks promote seamless and blended approaches to the urban fabric, he suggests.
Paul is optimistic that we are already starting to see enlightened selection, improved procurement, and recognition and encouragement of the extensive social value generated from publicly-funded Council new-build and refurbishment programmes.
“Large architectural practices once dominated commissioning,” he adds. “By championing the next generation of architects and pairing with younger practices, a multitude of ideas can be discussed and tested through the design process, and this diversity of design methods can bring the variety needed to make visually interesting and inspiring neighbourhoods.”
Read or download RIBA’s Foundations For The Future social housing report.
Thanks to Paul Karakusevic, Director, Karakusevic Carson Architects.
Text by Neal Morris. This is a Professional Feature edited by the RIBA Practice team. Send us your feedback and ideas
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