Community‐led Housing and ‘Slow’ Opposition to Corporate Development: Citizen Participation as Common Ground?

Abstract

AbstractCoinciding with the ideological agenda of ‘new localism’ in welfare and planning policy is popular re‐engagement with a convivial scale of participation in civil society. This is evident in a growing number and variety of community‐led housing (CLH) groups and projects. It is also evident in ‘slow’ social movements, such as Cittaslow, that emphasise ‘quality of life’ and ‘sustainability’. Paradoxically, while home and community are essential to a local sense of identity and belonging, connections have not been made between ‘slow’ opposition to the homogenizing effects of corporate development and CLH. This paper draws particular attention to groups of ordinary citizens creating new or modified forms of housing that are not available in the mainstream housing market. A view is taken of CLH that encompasses wider aspects of community organising and resilience. The paper highlights the socio‐spatial functions to citizen participation and motivations that drive CLH from the bottom–up. These need to be better understood if research and policy are to support and enable the process of growing locally driven housing solutions.