By Jas Bains

Housing is a persistent, complex issue that requires a systemic response. However, most resources focus on supply-side solutions, often overlooking broader impacts on adult care, childcare, employment, social connection, and wellbeing. While governments frequently cover housing costs, escalating demand and spiralling costs place these systems under significant strain.

Increasingly, policymakers, governments, and experts are exploring alternatives to the conventional “build more homes” approach. Data analyst John Burn-Murdoch projects that 2024 marks a peak in global population growth, followed by declines in birth rates across continents. The reasons are varied: widening gaps between public spending and tax revenue (projected to rise in the UK from 38% to 49% over two generations), delayed parenthood, prohibitive childcare costs, and a growing population reliant on caregiving as they age. These demographic shifts pose challenges, especially for lower-income households and middle- to high-income earners alike. The ratio of retirees to working adults has shifted from 1:4 to 1:3, potentially reaching 1:1 in line with trends observed in Japan. Countries like Canada and Hungary have implemented incentives, with Hungary allocating 5% of its GDP to address these issues, yet the outcomes have been limited. Building more homes may be a partial solution, but its impact remains constrained without a broader systemic perspective.

Key domains—housing, health, care, and education—require re-conception as interconnected priorities, demanding coordinated intervention across government agencies and budgets. Although the housing sector has yet to fully articulate such a vision, there are promising signs, with the UK Government emphasising prevention, reallocating resources to community services, and shifting towards multi-year funding with a focus on mission-driven goals.

According to Martin Hajer’s model, traditional institutions face three core deficits: legitimacy, delivery capability, and adaptability. Once, these applied primarily to governments, local authorities, and corporations; however, they now increasingly apply to housing associations. Although housing associations do not operate in a highly competitive environment, enjoying a symbiotic relationship with the state, this does not guarantee perpetual relevance. To stay at the forefront, housing associations must be prepared to deliver coordinated services, as others may step in to fill these roles if they fail to adapt.

Additionally, the Centre for Social Analysis at the London School of Economics (CASE) argues that new housing alone does little to address inequality and can exacerbate environmental challenges, with housing accounting for 17% of the UK’s CO2 emissions. Concerns over carbon budgets, labour shortages, and material costs further complicate the situation.

As John Turner, the American writer and activist, stated in his seminal 1970s pamphlet “Housing as a Verb”: housing’s importance lies not in what it is, but in what it does for people—a sentiment that is more relevant than ever today.

People live within complex social and economic systems influenced by factors such as poverty, hidden mental health issues, weak social ties, and loneliness. These forces often interact within neighbourhoods that lack sufficient support to mitigate them. Market-driven public service commissioning and austerity measures have eroded the resources needed to maintain public services that strengthen communities and prevent the need for costly interventions.

As we know well, sectors like housing, education, policing, and healthcare are dealing with the fallout from underfunded social services, mental health challenges, and an epidemic of loneliness. These gaps are often filled without adequate training, resources, or funding, leaving service providers stretched and underserved.

I firmly believe in the need to develop new approaches to address the mounting challenges of ageing, wellbeing, and childcare—an approach already seen in several other countries. Could intergenerational support networks or peer-to-peer childcare arrangements provide an alternative to costly childcare and enable greater workforce participation?

There is growing evidence of public support for sufficiency policies. A recent European survey of citizen assemblies revealed greater willingness to embrace these policies than government bodies, which are more swayed by short-term interests and lobbying. This public appetite for change is further supported by research highlighting that the social and environmental dimensions of the housing crisis require more radical, structural reforms.

Unlike Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, France, and Denmark, the UK lacks a cohesive policy framework for multigenerational housing. Germany, for example, has over 450 purpose-built multigenerational housing projects supported by the Mehrgenerationenhaus programme, which fosters intergenerational support with federal funding. Spain’s “Vive Convive” programme provides subsidies to elderly hosts, while the Netherlands offers competitive financing for social housing experiments.

Housing associations are well-suited to lead long-term community development for several reasons:

  1. Guardians of Communities: We create civic platforms and partnerships with community and voluntary organisations to build resilience and foster innovation.
  2. Place-Based Innovation: We take long-term risks and deliver services at the intersection of various needs, facilitating investment in community resilience and fostering sustainable development.
  3. Collaboration: Housing associations work effectively across agencies and governments, bridging gaps within communities and between different levels of government.
  4. Long-Term Investment: With a 60-70 year view, we have the time to build legitimacy, establish credibility, and leverage both financial and non-financial resources.

However, we recognise that this opportunity is time-sensitive. If housing associations fail to step up, others may occupy this role.

To be clear, we do not claim to have all the answers, and we recognise our relatively small size within the broader sector. However, we are willing to adopt new approaches, take measured risks, and invest intellectual, emotional, human, and financial capital in innovative strategies aimed at achieving better outcomes.

Mission

Our approach began with a collaborative process to define our purpose and desired impact. After setting the broader context, identifying challenges, and articulating our beliefs, we achieved a shared mission. This vision encompasses creating places people are proud to call home, offering wraparound support for those in acute need, serving as a springboard for those ready to advance, and co-creating communities that foster friendship, mutual support, and civic engagement.

Aspiration

We aim to reshape health, social care, and housing at a local level, centring services around community needs. Our vision includes creating locally-led, community-owned health and care services, potentially including care homes, that nurture healthy communities from pre-conception through old age. Collaborating with local sports clubs, we strive to make sport and physical activities accessible to people of all ages, utilising existing facilities and our own spaces. This approach could help reduce health disparities and provide pathways to skill development, confidence-building, and economic opportunity.

We will re-evaluate our assets and capital investments, aligning them with housing supply needs by repurposing existing stock and creating homes with the flexibility to support intergenerational living.

Our dialogue with government, stakeholders, and the community will explore the potential to systematically pool and manage risks, expanding the scope for innovation and delivering through differentiated contracting relationships. Achieving this will require a shift in leadership focus—away from insular, internally-focused models towards movement-building, shared purpose, and adaptable, context-specific frameworks.

Through thorough preparation, we are building on a solid foundation to face these challenges and bring our vision to life.