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Social entrepreneurs are crowdfunding to tackle the housing crisis
Social entrepreneurs are crowdfunding to tackle the housing crisis
Written by
UnLtd employee
UnLtd position
Social entrepreneurs are crowdfunding to tackle the housing crisis
Written by
UnLtd employee
UnLtd position
The housing crisis is not just an intellectual problem for British society, it’s an issue that affects many peoples’ day to day lives. How to provide good, affordable housing is a complex issue raising many questions. We believe that social entrepreneurs can provide some of the answers. At this week’s UK Construction Week a cohort of UnLtd award winners are showcasing ideas that could help transform housing in their community. They have won business support and funding to develop their ideas as part of our Building Futures programme. Four of the ground-breaking ideas are now using the crowdfunding platform JustGiving to raise much-needed funds to accelerate their work.
These ideas are meeting a pressing need, with government estimates suggesting more than 250,000 new private houses are required to meet the demand of the housing sector – with this demand only set to increase over coming years. Issues extend to the public sector too, with local authorities facing challenges in prioritising who they home, while Housing Associations deal with the far-reaching implications of Right to Buy. Mark Norbury, the UnLtd Chief Exec, explained: “The housing crisis is one of the United Kingdom’s most complex social problems. UnLtd is convinced that these social entrepreneurs have developed powerful solutions to address this crisis. These ideas have the potential to leave a lasting legacy – we hope people get behind them by supporting them on JustGiving.â€
Peter Richardson, from Leeds-based Chapeltown Cohousing, said: “Everyone should have a home; a safe, secure place to be themselves. That’s why I set up Chapeltown Cohousing - to help build homes for families living in one of the poorest and most deprived areas of the country."" He added: “Too often housing is a worry rather than a comfort. Most rented accommodation is short-term and provides no security. Buying a house is out of reach for many people and with house prices so high compared with earnings there seems little chance of this changing. It doesn’t have to be like that. I am helping local people take control of their own housing by working together to provide security for themselves and their families. Each household has their own home with everything they need, and in addition they are also part of a co-operative community with shared facilities such as a laundry, play room, communal kitchen and dining room.†The Holding Project aims to build 20 low cost sustainable homes for young professionals in Northern Ireland who are struggling in the private renting sector. The homes will be compact, eco-friendly and built using local services and materials. The homes are managed by its social enterprise, which allocates homes to young professionals who apply with a personal budget plan. The social entrepreneur behind this idea, Derv Heaney, said: “We are dedicated to helping people transition through housing, because where you live affects your life so deeply. We see so many people stuck in transition – renting properties and without help it can be simply impossible to move on with your life. This can mean moving on to buy a house, but also it could mean going into education or even saving up for a wedding. The housing crisis makes many of these life stages a distant dream for too many people. “So, simply put, our idea is about sustainable micro-homes that are cheap to build, high-quality and super-affordable to rent. The cheap rent allows people to build up a financial buffer, and then move on with the rest of their lives. We “save†25% of people’s rent, which they receive when they leave. Residents also fulfil certain tasks around The Holding Project too. The support we’ve had for UnLtd has been incredible; from workshops, to expertise – we’re now really focused on building our first prototype. We’re really excited about launching our idea on JustGiving.†If you’d like to help make their ideas successful, join us in backing social entrepreneurs finding the answers to the housing crisis.