Community Ownership of Social Housing in Glasgow: building more sustainable, cohesive communities?

Kim Mckee

doi:10.3351/ppp.0002.0002.0005

Abstract

Reconfiguring the United Kingdom’s ‘problematic’ council housing through transforming its management and ownership, has emerged as a significant aspect of the policy agenda to deliver more sustainable, cohesive communities (Perry and Blackaby 2007; McIntyre and McKee, in Press). Empowering residents to take decisions about priorities for their local area promises both to challenge paternalistic and monolithic management practices, as well as forge relations between different citizens in a community through their active involvement in local governance structures. Drawing on the case study of community ownership of social housing in Glasgow, this paper explores the challenges to delivering this agenda following the city’s 2003 housing stock transfer. In particular, the assumption that such a ‘community’ exists and wants to be involved is explored, as well as the inherent tensions within such a model of community governance. The paper concludes that the mobilisation of ‘community’ may exacerbate divisions within the tenant group as opposed to transcending them.

Highlights

Concerns about the problems of people in deprived neighbourhoods and the area affects of poverty, which are located in wider debates about social cohesion and social capital, have been influential (Kearns and Forrest 2000; Atkinson and Kintrea 2001; Forrest and Kearns 2001)
Often identified as a major factor contributing to socio-spatial segregation (Forrest and Murie 1988; Phillips 2007), has been held up as the ‘curative balm’ able to draw out the ‘infection’ undermining community cohesion (Robinson 2005: 1412)
This paper concentrates on community governance – a form of political governance in which the local community is directly engaged in the decision making process (Somerville 2005) – especially its role in promoting community cohesion by transforming the ownership and management of social housing, and encouraging greater involvement within the tenant group

Summary

Introduction

The community cohesion agenda has gained increasing prominence within the UK in the last decade, with events such as riots in northern England in 2001 and the 2005 London bombings, coupled with fears about migration and asylum seekers proving significant (Harrison et al 2005; Robinson 2005; Phillips 2006; Flint 2007; Perry and Blackaby 2007). This paper concentrates on community governance – a form of political governance in which the local community is directly engaged in the decision making process (Somerville 2005) – especially its role in promoting community cohesion by transforming the ownership and management of social housing, and encouraging greater involvement within the tenant group.

Results

Conclusion