This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse... more This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse within social policy, emphasising duties over rights. Current policy initiatives are based upon concerns about the collapse of foundational assumptions and a perceived decline in moral responsibility. This concern is most commonly articulated in debates about the existence of an urban underclass, linked to anti-social behaviour on housing estates. The paper argues that a communitarian outlook has exerted a signi® cant impact on contemporary initiatives incorporating a strongly judgmental bias. As a consequence, housing practice discriminates between behaviour in social housing and privately owned property. Drawing upon post-liberal perspectives, the conclusion suggests that the predominance of a deontological discourse has resulted in policies of social control of residents. and [email protected]. The authors would like to thank the anonymous referees and Judith Allen and Keith Jacobs of the University of Westminster for their comments on earlier drafts of this article.
The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions con... more The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions contend with one another plays a decisive part in policy-making. Justifications for policy intervention often require a narrative identifying villains or victims to creatively identify a 'social problem' needing to be addressed by appropriate measures. This article shows how contrasting political and media representations of council tenants in the 1960s and 1970s provided the emotive justifications for two distinct policies: 'Fair Rents' and the 'Right to Buy'. The article concludes that more attention should be paid to the way that the successful mobilisation of bias legitimises policy interventions.
It is commonly accepted that the study of urban politics has become increasingly complex and frag... more It is commonly accepted that the study of urban politics has become increasingly complex and fragmented, characterised by a shift away from formal local government structures to a diverse range of public, private and voluntary agencies. The analysis of 'multi-level'local governance (Stoker, 2004) in contemporary urban societies therefore requires a need to focus on informal relationships as well as formal institutions, acknowledging the role of a multiplicity of actors and their interactions within partnership and network structures.
Homelessness: public policies and private troubles
There is a large secondary literature on the subject of homelessness (see for example, Glastonbur... more There is a large secondary literature on the subject of homelessness (see for example, Glastonbury, 1971; Greve, 1964, 1971; Watson and Austerberry, 1986). In addition, homelessness has been subjected to intense empirical research, much of it funded by government (for a small selection see Anderson et al., 1993; Niner, 1989; Pleace, 1994; Thomas and Niner, 1989). Yet in nearly all of this, as in so much of the housing literature, homelessness is usually treated as an objective and objectifiable phenomena, within the positivist tradition of social enquiry. We argue that the definition of homelessness in Britain has changed over the last 30 years as vested interests have struggled to impose their particular definition on policy debates and to push the homelessness issue as they define it either higher up or lower down the policy agenda.
This paper reviews the arguments and some of the evidence on the emergence of gated communities a... more This paper reviews the arguments and some of the evidence on the emergence of gated communities and contends that the concept of the partitioned city has a useful application both in the private sector and public sector housing. The focus of the paper will be the UK context, and developments that have been largely ignored to date. The paper utilises the concept of 'club economics' to consider the critical issues behind the development of private neighbourhoods within public housing contexts. It contends that whilst gating may exemplify a form of privatism, it may also provide a contribution to social cohesion through the establishment of new forms of territorial management and relationships. It considers how democratic accountability can be established within such environments and how management structures can either facilitate or prevent resident empowerment. By formulating a typology of private and public dwellings and neighbourhoods the paper aims to advance existing critical discussion, arguing that in certain circumstances gating can be a contribution to social integration and can increase participatory democracy.
The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the p... more The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the paternalism and bureaucracy of traditional local authority landlords and encourages voluntary sector housing providers. The rationale for these strategies has been to use a diversity of landlords (to create synergy and avoid monolithic landlords)
... models based on principles of competition, 'incentivisation' and &a... more ... models based on principles of competition, 'incentivisation' and 'disaggregation' (Dunleavy and Hood, 1994). ... through increasing levels of consultation and participation in decision-making (Casey and Flint, 2007); strategies aimed at resident empowerment formed an important ...
Evidence based policy (EBP) has served as a persuasive rationale for government intervention; pro... more Evidence based policy (EBP) has served as a persuasive rationale for government intervention; providing a framework for evaluation through techniques of comprehensive and systematic review, closely associated in the UK with the welfare reforms undertaken by the Blair and Brown led Labour governments. In this article, we show how EBP serves as a convenient device for governments to present policy-making to a wider public, gaining legitimacy through an appeal to technical rationality and thereby shielding from scrutiny the underlying ideologies and politics that constitute housing practice. Following a brief discussion of the emergence of an 'instrumental' turn in housing policy, we consider the deployment of evidence based rationalities using the examples of public housing stock transfer, the housing market renewal programme and the 2011 Localism Act as evidence to support our arguments. Our key claim is that whilst housing policy makers continue to promote EBP to justify decision making, the choices they pursue are best explained by factors largely unrelated to 'evidence'; for example the relative power and influence of interest groupings both within government and beyond. We conclude with the suggestion that housing policy research requires a significant reorientation if it is to provide insights into aspects of policy making that remain under-examined.
This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse... more This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse within social policy, emphasising duties over rights. Current policy initiatives are based upon concerns about the collapse of foundational assumptions and a perceived decline in moral responsibility. This concern is most commonly articulated in debates about the existence of an urban underclass, linked to anti-social behaviour on housing estates. The paper argues that a communitarian outlook has exerted a signi® cant impact on contemporary initiatives incorporating a strongly judgmental bias. As a consequence, housing practice discriminates between behaviour in social housing and privately owned property. Drawing upon post-liberal perspectives, the conclusion suggests that the predominance of a deontological discourse has resulted in policies of social control of residents. and [email protected]. The authors would like to thank the anonymous referees and Judith Allen and Keith Jacobs of the University of Westminster for their comments on earlier drafts of this article.
The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions con... more The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions contend with one another plays a decisive part in policy-making. Justifications for policy intervention often require a narrative identifying villains or victims to creatively identify a 'social problem' needing to be addressed by appropriate measures. This article shows how contrasting political and media representations of council tenants in the 1960s and 1970s provided the emotive justifications for two distinct policies: 'Fair Rents' and the 'Right to Buy'. The article concludes that more attention should be paid to the way that the successful mobilisation of bias legitimises policy interventions.
The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the p... more The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the paternalism and bureaucracy of traditional local authority landlords and encourages voluntary sector housing providers. The rationale for these strategies has been to use a diversity of landlords (to create synergy and avoid monolithic landlords)
This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse... more This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse within social policy, emphasising duties over rights. Current policy initiatives are based upon concerns about the collapse of foundational assumptions and a perceived decline in moral responsibility. This concern is most commonly articulated in debates about the existence of an urban underclass, linked to anti-social behaviour on housing estates. The paper argues that a communitarian outlook has exerted a signi® cant impact on contemporary initiatives incorporating a strongly judgmental bias. As a consequence, housing practice discriminates between behaviour in social housing and privately owned property. Drawing upon post-liberal perspectives, the conclusion suggests that the predominance of a deontological discourse has resulted in policies of social control of residents. and [email protected]. The authors would like to thank the anonymous referees and Judith Allen and Keith Jacobs of the University of Westminster for their comments on earlier drafts of this article.
The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions con... more The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions contend with one another plays a decisive part in policy-making. Justifications for policy intervention often require a narrative identifying villains or victims to creatively identify a 'social problem' needing to be addressed by appropriate measures. This article shows how contrasting political and media representations of council tenants in the 1960s and 1970s provided the emotive justifications for two distinct policies: 'Fair Rents' and the 'Right to Buy'. The article concludes that more attention should be paid to the way that the successful mobilisation of bias legitimises policy interventions.
It is commonly accepted that the study of urban politics has become increasingly complex and frag... more It is commonly accepted that the study of urban politics has become increasingly complex and fragmented, characterised by a shift away from formal local government structures to a diverse range of public, private and voluntary agencies. The analysis of 'multi-level'local governance (Stoker, 2004) in contemporary urban societies therefore requires a need to focus on informal relationships as well as formal institutions, acknowledging the role of a multiplicity of actors and their interactions within partnership and network structures.
Homelessness: public policies and private troubles
There is a large secondary literature on the subject of homelessness (see for example, Glastonbur... more There is a large secondary literature on the subject of homelessness (see for example, Glastonbury, 1971; Greve, 1964, 1971; Watson and Austerberry, 1986). In addition, homelessness has been subjected to intense empirical research, much of it funded by government (for a small selection see Anderson et al., 1993; Niner, 1989; Pleace, 1994; Thomas and Niner, 1989). Yet in nearly all of this, as in so much of the housing literature, homelessness is usually treated as an objective and objectifiable phenomena, within the positivist tradition of social enquiry. We argue that the definition of homelessness in Britain has changed over the last 30 years as vested interests have struggled to impose their particular definition on policy debates and to push the homelessness issue as they define it either higher up or lower down the policy agenda.
This paper reviews the arguments and some of the evidence on the emergence of gated communities a... more This paper reviews the arguments and some of the evidence on the emergence of gated communities and contends that the concept of the partitioned city has a useful application both in the private sector and public sector housing. The focus of the paper will be the UK context, and developments that have been largely ignored to date. The paper utilises the concept of 'club economics' to consider the critical issues behind the development of private neighbourhoods within public housing contexts. It contends that whilst gating may exemplify a form of privatism, it may also provide a contribution to social cohesion through the establishment of new forms of territorial management and relationships. It considers how democratic accountability can be established within such environments and how management structures can either facilitate or prevent resident empowerment. By formulating a typology of private and public dwellings and neighbourhoods the paper aims to advance existing critical discussion, arguing that in certain circumstances gating can be a contribution to social integration and can increase participatory democracy.
The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the p... more The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the paternalism and bureaucracy of traditional local authority landlords and encourages voluntary sector housing providers. The rationale for these strategies has been to use a diversity of landlords (to create synergy and avoid monolithic landlords)
... models based on principles of competition, 'incentivisation' and &a... more ... models based on principles of competition, 'incentivisation' and 'disaggregation' (Dunleavy and Hood, 1994). ... through increasing levels of consultation and participation in decision-making (Casey and Flint, 2007); strategies aimed at resident empowerment formed an important ...
Evidence based policy (EBP) has served as a persuasive rationale for government intervention; pro... more Evidence based policy (EBP) has served as a persuasive rationale for government intervention; providing a framework for evaluation through techniques of comprehensive and systematic review, closely associated in the UK with the welfare reforms undertaken by the Blair and Brown led Labour governments. In this article, we show how EBP serves as a convenient device for governments to present policy-making to a wider public, gaining legitimacy through an appeal to technical rationality and thereby shielding from scrutiny the underlying ideologies and politics that constitute housing practice. Following a brief discussion of the emergence of an 'instrumental' turn in housing policy, we consider the deployment of evidence based rationalities using the examples of public housing stock transfer, the housing market renewal programme and the 2011 Localism Act as evidence to support our arguments. Our key claim is that whilst housing policy makers continue to promote EBP to justify decision making, the choices they pursue are best explained by factors largely unrelated to 'evidence'; for example the relative power and influence of interest groupings both within government and beyond. We conclude with the suggestion that housing policy research requires a significant reorientation if it is to provide insights into aspects of policy making that remain under-examined.
This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse... more This paper examines contemporary housing management practice by attention to a changing discourse within social policy, emphasising duties over rights. Current policy initiatives are based upon concerns about the collapse of foundational assumptions and a perceived decline in moral responsibility. This concern is most commonly articulated in debates about the existence of an urban underclass, linked to anti-social behaviour on housing estates. The paper argues that a communitarian outlook has exerted a signi® cant impact on contemporary initiatives incorporating a strongly judgmental bias. As a consequence, housing practice discriminates between behaviour in social housing and privately owned property. Drawing upon post-liberal perspectives, the conclusion suggests that the predominance of a deontological discourse has resulted in policies of social control of residents. and [email protected]. The authors would like to thank the anonymous referees and Judith Allen and Keith Jacobs of the University of Westminster for their comments on earlier drafts of this article.
The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions con... more The process of social construction in which competing and sometimes contradictory definitions contend with one another plays a decisive part in policy-making. Justifications for policy intervention often require a narrative identifying villains or victims to creatively identify a 'social problem' needing to be addressed by appropriate measures. This article shows how contrasting political and media representations of council tenants in the 1960s and 1970s provided the emotive justifications for two distinct policies: 'Fair Rents' and the 'Right to Buy'. The article concludes that more attention should be paid to the way that the successful mobilisation of bias legitimises policy interventions.
The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the p... more The broad trajectory of housing policy since the 1980s has been in a direction that rejects the paternalism and bureaucracy of traditional local authority landlords and encourages voluntary sector housing providers. The rationale for these strategies has been to use a diversity of landlords (to create synergy and avoid monolithic landlords)
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