Architects Datafile - 02.2020

H

omelessness is an ongoing and growing problem, with the

number of homeless people increasing by a third between

2012 and 2018. There are at least 320,000 homeless

people in the UK, according to research by housing charity Shelter.

Since the Homelessness Reduction Act came into force in April

2018 councils in England have a legal duty to find a person

somewhere to stay if they are homeless and a duty to help people at

risk of losing their home. However, despite this, there are

increasingly more people sleeping rough on our streets, which

means the need for housing continues to grow. In particular, there is

a big demand for interim accommodation (an alternative to B&B’s,

hostels and nightly-paid private housing) that offers a lower cost,

and better-quality option.

Over the past year we’ve seen a rise in requests to work on

projects for this vulnerable demographic. While there is widespread

public support for getting homeless people into suitable

accommodation, a number of challenges around design and

planning, as well as objections from the local community, continue

to present themselves.

The crux of the problem is around planning consent. While

councils are trying to tackle the issue of interim homes for the

homeless, there is no suitable planning class for this type of

housing. HMO housing standards or general needs housing do not

fit this category, which means there is a lack of planning guidance

and usually no real precedent. Progress therefore, is largely down to

the discretion of the planner. This makes the job of an architect a

tricky one, but what makes the situation sadder is that planning

issues can often stall the build over a long period, meaning more

people remain homeless, thus exacerbating the problem.

If asked what advice I would give to

another architect when designing for

interim accommodation for the homeless,

the main thing would be to remember that

we are not trying to achieve award-

winning architecture. We are trying to

solve a problem

Nicolas Maari of multi-disciplinary firm Pellings looks at the challenges for designers

around providing interim accommodation for the homeless

Addressing a national problem

SITE LINES

HERTFORDSHIRE

Pellings is acting as architects up to planning and then as employer’s agent for 74 new temporary accommodation units in a conservation area

22INSIGHTS

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