Events

The Housing 2026 conference played host to a debate on our Interim findings from the Cooperation in Social Housing Commission.

We are working on a replicable model of collaborative decision-making for social landlords and tenants as an alternative to devolved tenant management, as part of the Commission.

At the heart of the approach is a commitment to change at cultural and structural levels within the sector – embedding relational practice and creating mechanisms for residents to lead on decisions important to them. This is about sharing power, embracing conflict and building a model that benefits landlords and tenants alike.

Panellists Tom Bremner, Rowan Mackay, Kai Jackson, Gemma Bell and Laura Werlemann gave valuable insights and ideas for scaling this approach. Our interim findings from the Commission Pilot Programme identify key lessons on skills, knowledge sharing, recruitment, conflict, representation and risk, and will inform the Commission’s outputs later this year.

 

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This weekend saw the first Collective Ownership member event, convening a powerful mix of prospective members and existing co-operatives. Collective Ownership offers impactful investment opportunities to address the private rental crisis, with fair, resident-controlled housing.

The energy at this introductory event was focused on tangible progress. We presented our refined model and how Collective Ownership structures property acquisitions, transforming them into secure, long-term homes for disempowered renters fed up with a lack of control over their homes.

Our partners, Community Assets for Society and Housing (CASH), presented their complementary work focusing on training and preparing a community share issue. CASH also led a jargon busting session to help break down what can sometimes be complex governance issues into something which everyone could get a grip on.

Collaborative breakout sessions saw members sharing experiences and mapping next steps particularly around spreading the word and attracting funding and investment.
The consensus was clear: by aligning efforts, we can scale community-led housing effectively.

 

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We are helping to host the launch of some interesting work by Savannah Fishel drawing lessons from intergenerational cohousing communities in the USA and Australia. Her observations reflect our experience in the UK, and help deepen our approach to Build Belonging, where we turn developments into strong communities with a sense of belonging and neighbourly living.

The launch on 16 July includes a brief exhibition of case studies. The report will draw out the conditions that contribute to social cohesion between generations, and the strategies, interventions or designs that are effective in mitigating friction and helping a community to thrive.

 

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The Summer 2025 edition of the Urban Design Journal focuses on the increasing influence of community-led organisations in delivering new neighbourhoods.

We have a piece on giving people control and belonging, without the challenges encountered in traditional approaches to community led housing. Collective Ownership offers control and security for private renters with increasing affordability over time. Build Belonging is a form of custom built cohousing where we help developers incorporate the social and design principles of CLH into their developments, and forge communities around these projects.

We also reference RUSS and NW3 CLT, and other articles consider projects we’ve supported such as Squeezed London and Surge Co-operative.

On Monday 14 July, our director, Levent Kerimol, will take part in a discussion on Community Led Urbanism to explain how we’re taking forward these approaches to a wider number of people, chaired by Paul Reynolds, UDG Chair and Topic Editor for this latest edition of the Journal.

 

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Thursday 13 June, 3pm – 5pm

Renting from private landlords exists today as the least secure and poorest quality housing tenure. This has led to a growing number of Londoners looking to take control of their housing security, and in doing so, challenging the very idea of what it means to own a home. Housing Co-operatives and new models of Collective Ownership are emerging with the aim of enabling people to come together, pool resources, and be their own landlords.

Join us for a talk reviewing how renters have taken control, and workshop on how you can do it too, taking place during the Renters exhibition of artistic practices from UAL students and recent graduates.

The exhibition builds on research carried out in the Arts Students Union’s Private Renters Report, which revealed huge levels of dissatisfaction with the private rental sector, and how it impacts students’ physical, emotional and mental wellbeing. The exhibition includes artworks by students from a variety of courses and colleges across UAL. Through sculpture, painting, photography, video, design and other multidisciplinary practices.

 

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