Housing

Inspiring projects

Click on this link for an example of how to gain 'sweat equity' by helping to build your own home.

Organisations

Chartered Institute of Housing - published a book on why demolition is bad! Details forthcoming...

Birmingham Habitat for Humanity

Habitat for Humanity is an interdenominational Christian community development and housing charity. We have taken a simple idea and the labour of enthusiastic volunteers to create new homes with and for people in housing need....

The families chosen to live in the houses will assist with the building and contribute their own "sweat equity" to the project helped by partnerships with community associations, churches, companies and the local council.

Habitat for Humanity GB - the national and international arm of the above...

Ideas and resources on encouraging eco-building

I put this here because of thinking about local training for both eco- and non-eco housing during the pathfinder development framework.

http://www.dti.gov.uk/construction/news/conmon/nov01/con10.htm

"Ambition: Construction aims to train and place 1000 New Deal clients in skilled jobs as carpenters and joiners, bricklayers, painters and decorators, plasterers, roofers, and glaziers. Trainees will receive appropriate level Construction Skills Certification Scheme cards to document their competence and further enhance their employability.

"The scheme - launched by work and pensions minister Alistair Darling during NCW 2001 - is supported by £3m funding from the CITB and £1m from the New Deal Innovation Fund in addition to regular New Deal client funding. It also has wide support from construction companies. Darling said: "Such partnerships are essential if we are to continue towards our goal of full employment.

"Ambition: Construction has been designed by construction employers, the CITB, the New Deal Task Force and the Employment Service to meet the needs of industry and disadvantaged jobseekers."

Des Browne (Kilmarnock & Loudoun, Lab)

"In 2001 we launched the Ambition initiative to help unemployed and disadvantaged people gain the right skills to meet the needs of employers in key sectors such as construction."

"Ambition:Construction has been operational since June 2002 with pilots currently running in six locations. Training is provided across the full range of building skills including bricklaying, roofing, plastering, joinery, glazing and painting and decorating. The aim of this training is to provide participants with the skills they need for a wide variety of jobs in the construction industry, including house building."

"By the end of May 2003, 775 people had been funded by Ambition:Construction. Most of the training courses on this programme last 6 months and so only 184 have so far completed training. Of those, 171 have obtained jobs."