Architects Datafile (ADF) – August 2019

4NEWS

WWW.ARCHITECTSDATAFILE.CO.UK ADF AUGUST 2019

FROM

THE EDITOR

A

combination of feelings have been experienced by yours truly on the reality of Boris Johnson taking the

reins of power – a mix of accepting the realisation of the seemingly inevitable, the undeniable shock of

actually seeing him in Downing Street.

The worth or otherwise of his previous achievements remain something of an enigma, and as yet we’ve heard and

seen little more than words and gestures. Was his attempted Heatherwick-designed garden bridge just a vanity

project or a heroic failure? Is he a liar or a bumbling optimist? In our regrettably polarised times, it increasingly

depends on who you ask. What we do know is we again have novices in charge of the only Government

department dedicated to construction (MHCLG), who will need all the advice and strong encouragement the

industry can muster to cut through the Brexit noise.

Boris has said little about construction since entering the office, but one of the shocks in his initial purge of

Remainers was the sacking of Communities Secretary, James Brokenshire, who was in charge of housing. Only in

the job for just over a year (not a bad stint by the standards of some predecessors), he was active in tackling the

post-Grenfell fallout, and issues such as residential leaseholds. However his ban on combustible cladding over 18

metres was seen potentially as a knee-jerk reaction sounding the death knell for CLT in tall buildings.

New man Robert Jenrick is a novice in housing. At 37, the ex-solicitor was the youngest Minister in Theresa May’s

Government, and has few claims to fame beyond owning a few properties in his own right. Apparently he is

something of a champion for protecting ancient buildings, but while at the Treasury was also a key figure in

pushing huge amounts of new housebuilding in the ‘Oxford-Cambridge arc,’ to the consternation of protestors.

Esther McVey, replacing Kim Malthouse as Housing Minister, has a much higher, not altogether healthy public

profile – mainly from her controversial work on Universal Credit at the DWP. She does however have a background

in construction, although her family’s firm specialised in demolition rather than building. She’s the tenth housing

minister to go through the revolving door in a decade.

Boris will talk big on continuing to prioritise housebuilding, but we need to face the facts that there’s only one

problem he’ll be focusing on in the next three months. The task will be down to Jenrick, who will need to edit

down a colossal to-do list, as the construction industry lobbies him and his team round the clock. The target

remains 300,000 homes – currently the industry is averaging 177,000 a year over the past 10.

He’ll need to ensure that no deal Brexit planning includes measures for ensuring that construction sites don’t

rapidly grind to a halt in the aftermath of a chaotic no deal, as already acute staff shortages are exacerbated. The

industry also needs help in terms of how it will be able to mitigate further increases in materials costs from a

weakening pound, rather than just passing them on to customers.

The plight of SME contractors, the dearth of apprenticeships, the hollowing out of local planning departments, not

to mention the struggle to retain good

architectural staff post-Brexit – these are

just some of the issues on the new

Secretary Jenrick’s desk. Hopefully he

doesn’t need too much sleep!

James Parker

Editor

ON THE COVER...

Inspired by the ‘Bamboo Forest’ of a nearby national

park, the Wuxi Tahu Show Theatre designed by Steven

Chilton Architects has been shortlisted

for the Future Project Award (Cultural) at

the World Architecture Festival.

For the full report on this project, go to page 32

Cover image © Steven Chilton Architects

08.

WUXI TAIHO SHOW THEATRE, CHINACreating a canopy inspired by the Sea of Bamboo

ONE HEDDON STREET, LONDONBarr Gazetas turns an unremarkable ofce building into awellness-driven coworking space for The Crown Estate

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