Middlesbrough Council - News Forum - Setting a light to the News

PATHFINDER: THE GREAT DEMOLITION
Research Dossier
Currently, across the UK, thousands of homes have been demolished or are under threat from
demolition- as part of the Government’s Housing Market Renewal (HMR) Pathfinder schemes. These
houses, made up mostly of Georgian and Victorian terraces, are being deemed either uninhabitable or
unsellable and are being replaced with brand new developments, aimed at providing more suitable housing
to meet the UK’s housing demands. There are 9 main pathfinder schemes across the UK which are taking
place in:
- Birmingham/Sandwell
- East Lancashire,
- Hull
- Manchester/Salford
- Merseyside
- Newcastle/Gateshead
- North Staffordshire
- Oldham/Rochdale
- South Yorkshire.
However there has been stiff opposition from campaigners who have refused to allow their homes be
demolished. These campaigners, along with organisations such as SAVE, Urbed, Empty Houses Agency and
Defend Council Housing - as well as the national media - have argued that refurbishment of these terrace
properties is a far better option for housing redevelopment.
Demolition: For and Against
The main arguments for demolition have been:
▪ Condition - The terrace houses in question are of unfit and unsustainable condition to remain in
use or to be refurbished. Many are derelict and in extremely bad condition.
▪ Diversity - The claim that there are too many terrace houses in northern cities, and that in order to
provide more variety in the housing market, new types of buildings are required.
▪ Urban Cohesion - To bring down vacancy levels and crime levels in the pathfinder areas, and
reduce the gap in crime/vacancy levels between these areas at the rest of the UK.
▪ House Prices - The aim is also to increase house prices in pathfinder areas.
Many of these claims have been heavily contested by those opposed to demolition. They argue that the
vast majority of buildings in question are of perfectly sound condition structurally, and that refurbishment
is a very viable option for them 1.Opponents to demolition also demonstrate how refurbishment of
property can include extensions/joining properties together etc, allowing for a more diverse range of
available property 2 - one of the aims of pathfinder. And that refurbishment will strengthen urban
cohesion and reduce vacancy levels. The arguments against demolitions are the following:
▪ Cost - Demolition costs far more than refurbishment. It is estimated that the cost of demolition is
twice as much as the refurbishment 3.
▪ Community - Bulldozing entire areas of a city is extremely damaging to local communities, which
have been growing and developing for decades.
▪ Heritage - There is great cultural importance both within communities as well as in the buildings
themselves. This has led to the charity Save Britain’s Heritage opposing the government demolitions
largely because of historical/sociocultural importance of the buildings’ heritage.
▪ Homelessness & Debt - Demolitions have resulted in a rise in homelessness as well as debt 4 - as
the price home owners are given for their demolished homes are on average £35,000 less than the
price of the new homes they are then moved into 5.
▪ Environment - Demolition is extremely damaging to the environment, and refurbishment results in
a far smaller carbon footprint. Recent studies show that the energy used during the construction of a
new building makes up 30% of the buildings overall emissions in a lifetime. Also, at a time when the
government is promoting its ‘green’ policies, the tax preference given to demolition over
refurbishment shows a complete contradiction. 6
▪ Unlawful - Finally, demolition can be extremely stressful on communities and individuals -
particularly the elderly. Issues of Human Rights Law, and whether governments can legally demolish
structurally sound property is also a key factor in this. 7
1 http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/doc ... tethpr.pdf
2 http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/doc ... 0small.pdf
3 http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/doc ... tethpr.pdf
4 http://england.shelter.org.uk/__data/as ... 7/8234.pdf
5 http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/1 ... ousing.pdf
6 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthn ... hange.html
7 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthc ... thlog.html
________________________________________
ORGANISATIONS
Save Britain’s Heritage
SAVE is a registered charity which has openly opposed the actions of Pathfinder schemes, based primarily
on the historical and sociocultural importance of Victorian and Georgian terrace houses which are under
threat.
SAVE traditionally supports the preservation of older buildings, or more significant individual structures.
However they have always been interested in urban planning and communities, ever since they were
founded following the government demolitions during the 1960’s. When I spoke to William Palin,
Secretary of SAVE, he said:
When pathfinder was announced, 10 years ago, we straight away recognised that it posed the biggest ever threat
to the historic landscape our towns and cities. And we quickly got involvde by supporting local groups…It is the
most insane policy the Labour government has ever carried out. 8
Liverpool
The charity ran an exhibition, Triumph, Disaster and Decay, at the milkandsugar gallery in Liverpool. The
exhibition displayed a large collection of photographs, showing the abandonment, decay and planned
demolition of large sections of the city under government pathfinders. ‘There is horror going on in the
suburbs of Liverpool - good quality houses in Everton, Edge Street, Welsh Streets - being demolished for
no reason’ 9, said Mr Palin.
Here is a review of the exhibition in The Independent:
Triumph, Disaster and Decay, milkandsugar, Liverpool
Pictures of a city that care forgot
Reviewed by Anthony Quinn
Tuesday, 24 February 2009
…That legacy of near-criminal negligence seems to have been handed down through the DNA of Liverpool City Council. One
might leave this exhibition feeling indignant and deeply depressed, for the disasters of the 1960s are returning, in the shape of
the Government-sponsored Pathfinder schemes. Hearteningly, campaigns are being fought against further depredations.
Elizabeth Pascoe still battles a road-widening scheme that would destroy 400 perfectly good family houses in and around Edge
Lane. Florence Gersten also continues a valiant rearguard against municipal vandalism, having helped to save the Lyceum
building in Bold Street back in the 1980s. Save Britain’s Heritage itself deserves immense credit for supporting the fightback,
and for mounting this exhibition, splendidly curated by Robert Hradsky. 10
Manchester - Toxteth
Mark Hines
In Toxteth, SAVE has joined up with acclaimed architect Mark
Hines to look at sustainable ways to refurbish rather than
demolish the 400 targeted terrace houses. Hines has provided
examples of how derelict homes can be refurbished in a very
effective, environmentally friendly and sustainable way. Existing
buildings could also be extended/joined with others, to increase
the variety of building sizes and meet housing demands, 11
‘We have heard from the local council, who are interested more in refurbishment and the plans of
architect Mark Hines’, said Mr Palin, adding; ‘Refurbishment is very flexible, one house at a time, one
street at a time. It is far cheaper than demolition and re-build.’12
8 Quote from phone interview, see appendix
9 Quote from phone interview, see appendix
10 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-enter ... 30252.html
11 http://www.markhines.co.uk/projectDetai ... ojectid=20
12 Quote from phone interview, see appendix
________________________________________
Brian Morton
Mark Hines’ work with SAVE was also supported by experienced structural engineer, Brian Morton
MBE. Mr Morton, in a SAVE commissioned report, indicated that buildings planned for demolition in
Toxteth Street are built to a surprisingly high standard. With his report rejecting previous surveys that
claimed 77% of the terraces were either unfit or defective.13
I am very angry and upset about what’s been happening in Toxteth Street. Toxteth Street is an ideal location,
there is lots of space and the buildings are all very well constructed. It’s an absolute farce.14
When I asked him why previous surveys
seemed so inaccurate, he concluded that
the surveys had been carried out by a
recruitment firm, which had recently set
up a surveying department. They used a
tick sheet method during the surveying,
and when he rang to ask how thorough
the surveys were, they were unable to
tell him.
The houses are all extremely well built. They are well insulated, all that is needed is good roof insulation. It would
be a complete waste of money to demolish them. 15
The Department of Communities and Local Government
This government department is responsible for running the Housing Market Renewal Scheme (HMR) and
the pathfinder programmes. The HMR department clearly outlines its aims for regeneration:
People living in areas affected by low demand often have limited housing choices. Their homes are typically valued
at prices significantly below local averages, making it difficult to move, even if the home is no longer suitable for
their needs. The stock available to them is often unpopular, with high levels of vacancies, and in poor condition.
Pathfinders are working to ensure that people have a real choice about staying in their areas and are not forced
out because of the poor quality of housing. They do this by providing a choice of better quality homes, through a
mix of refurbishment, clearance and replacement, as well as some environmental works. 16
Latest statistics do show that the pathfinder programme has led to the refurbishment of 59,000,
compared to 16,100 demolitions. 17 This does show that the HMR regeneration programme is committed
to the refurbishment as well as demolition, of terraced houses. With Will Palin from SAVE admitting that:
‘We don’t want to completely dismiss or see an end to pathfinder. It has refurbished a great many
properties - we would just like to see the focus be on entirely refurbishment.’ 18
Urbed.coop
Urbed is a Manchester based company which works alongside a number of organizations including SAVE
and the Empty Homes Agency (EHA). Most significantly, Urbed held a conference with SAVE and EHA,
named 'Challenging Planning to Support Re-Use of Historic Buildings'. It looked at the importance existing
buildings have upon communities and overall town layouts. Also the environmental advantages of terrace
housing, (solar panels, combined heat power) and the proposed idea of rewarding people for responsible
ownership of their property. The conference was attended by Professor Ann Powers, London School
of Economics, who was opposed to the governments poor tax rules regarding the 0% VAT applied to new
builds, compared with the17.5% VAT applied to the refurbishment of buildings.
13 http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/doc ... tethpr.pdf
14 Quote from phone interview, see appendix
15 Quote from phone interview, see appendix
16 http://www.communities.gov.uk/housing/h ... etrenewal/
17http://www.communities.gov.uk/housing/housings ... ingmarketr
enewal1/?id=1424400#question
18 Quote from phone interview, see appendix
________________________________________
Anne Power addressed the third session as keynote speaker. Her
paper was a highly persuasive paean against demolition as the
‘default' position for many when assessing the validity of existing
buildings. She drew on huge experience both as a community
activist and as an academic. …The debate centred around the
inadequacies of the UK planning and tax systems in encouraging
re-use. 19
Empty Homes Agency
The Empty Homes Agency is a charity tasked with raising an awareness regarding the number of empty
homes across the UK - and encouraging local council and government to refurbish and re-use these
empty homes, rather than demolish them. They worked closely with SAVE and Urbed during the meeting:
'Challenging Planning to Support Re-Use of Historic Buildings’. EHA argues that despite there being a ‘housing
crisis’ and shortage of available homes, there are nearly 1 million empty homes across the UK - many of
which have been made derelict due to the threat of potential demolitions.
The Empty Homes Agency is calling on councils to improve their performance in bringing empty homes back into
use. It is calling on the Government and the Homes and Communities Agency to redirect investment intended for
building new homes towards purchase and repair of empty and run-down private homes, and calling on them to
provide small grants to enable housing associations and co-operatives to operate short life housing schemes… The
Empty Homes Agency has calculated that empty homes across the whole of the UK stood at 943,000 in 2008. 20
Defend Council Housing
Defend Council Housing is an organisation against the transfer of housing stock from council owned, to
privately owned. They claim that the Pathfinders are a way in which council houses are demolished so
that the land can then be sold onto private developers. Defend Council Housing opposes stock transfer for
a number of reasons:
▪ Often leads to demolition, and the new property is too expensive for tenants to remain.
▪ Rent is higher for privately owned property - rent goes to ‘fat cat company bosses’.
▪ Homelessness and debt increase in areas where council stock is privatised, as rent and property
prices rise. 21
Shelter
Early reports from the charity shelter regarding pathfinder areas, state that homelessness is expected to
rise. Like in the Rowntree report, the low price home owners receive for their demolished property is
not enough for the purchase of new property - which can lead to homelessness:
Once the demolition of low-demand stock takes place, there are further implications for homelessness:
• A number of the private-sector tenants who live in the demolition areas will be there because they have been
evicted from social housing. They are likely to be excluded from the local authority’s housing register because of
this and, when they lose their home, they will not be rehoused. The issue of what will become of these households
is a very problematic one – they usually end up in the low-demand areas.
• Owner-occupiers may find they don’t get adequate statutory compensation when their homes are demolished.
Some of these former owner-occupier households are likely to end up presenting as homeless.
• The housing that will replace demolished buildings may be different in terms of affordability. The proportion of
social housing may also differ and the new developments may not contain enough social or affordable housing to
meet local needs. 22
19 Urbed.coop
20 http://www.emptyhomes.com/latestnews/eha_pr09.html
21 http://www.defendcouncilhousing.org.uk/ ... ansfer.cfm
22 http://england.shelter.org.uk/__data/as ... 7/8234.pdf
________________________________________
Joseph Rowntree Foundation
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation produced a report, with Ian Cole and John Flint of the Sheffield
Hallam University, analysing the effect of the Pathfinder schemes across the UK. Although the report is
quite open about its support for the demolition of terrace housing - it does provide some arguments
against this view point:
A combination of falling values in areas designated for clearance and rising house prices in other local areas is
increasing this affordability gap, which has been identified as around £30-35,000 by David Cumberland
Associates, which has undertaken much of the specialist analysis for different Pathfinders. 23
Here, the report shows that house prices fall in areas sectioned out to be demolished. And this, coupled
with the higher house prices in local re-location areas - means that on average there is a £30-35,000 price
gap between old and new homes.
As identified by Defend Council Housing, this can lead people struggling to find a new home as they have
not the money to buy a new one. One solution provided by the Pathfinder schemes, is for home owners
to take out ‘relocation equity loans’, whereby some of their property is then owned by the lenders and
repaid whenever the property is sold. This effectively can put home owners into debt, and continue the
trend of ownership of property through credit - a large cause of the current recession. This is also a
problem for retired home owners, who may not be eligible for relocation equity loans.
Building Research Establishment (BRE)
As part of the BRE, Rethinking
Housing Refurbishment (RHR) has
been set up to focus on the
importance of refurbishment over
demolition. As well as looking at
the sociocultural importance of old
buildings, it is exploring the
emerging new technologies which
make refurbishment key to cutting
down on carbon emissions, and making it a far more environmentally friendly option. The project
‘Victorian Buildings Reborn’ focuses on the specific refurbishment of the kind of terrace homes being
demolished by pathfinders.24
CABE
The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment is an impartial public agency, which reviews and
offers guidance to architects, planners, designers and developers. They been critical about the pathfinder
schemes in both Liverpool and Birmingham. In Edge Lane, Liverpool, they argued that the plans would not
meet the objectives set
25. And in the Cape Hill
brewery site in
Birmingham, they
criticised poor
architecture and
planning, ‘the street
pattern lacks hierarchy
and clarity of purpose’. 26
23 http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/1 ... ousing.pdf
24 http://www.rethinkinghousingrefurbishme ... sp?id=1055
25 http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news ... 64.article
26 http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news ... 36.article
________________________________________
Controversy
Public Opposition
The government’s Housing Market Renewal (HMR) Pathfinders, have generated a lot of opposition from
public figures. David Cameron was open about his opposition to it, and called for refurbishment over
demolition. 27 Prince Charles criticised the plans to demolish terrace homes, whilst on a visit to Liverpool.
28 And Jane Kennedy, former minister and MP for Liverpool Wavertree, called the pathfinder scheme
‘social cleansing’. 29
Liverpool UNESCO & Capital of Culture 2008
As well as being made European Capital of Culture in 2008, Liverpool is also host to a UNESCO World
Heritage Site. Despite the planned demolition of 400 historically important terraces in the Welsh Streets
of Liverpool, UNESCO awarded Liverpool with World Heritage status in 2004, on the significance of its
docklands, and of the historic significance of the city as a whole during the 18th and 19th centuries - during
which time the Victorian Terraces earmarked for demolition were constructed. 30
The Guardian’s ‘Promised Lands’ - HMRP Supplement Sponsorship
Controversy emerged regarding a supplement in the Guardian newspaper, named Promised Lands. It
focused on the current and future housing development schemes taking place across the UK, including the
pathfinders. This supplement was in fact sponsored and paid for by the government department, Housing
Market Renewal Partnership (HMRP). According to Simon Jenkins, also of the Guardian: ‘In return for a
large sum of money, the agency [HMRP] was offered pre-sight of the copy to "correct inaccuracies". In effect, it
secured sympathetic coverage. None of the writers (nor the Guardian's readers) was told of this, or that their fees
were being paid, in effect, by the Blair government. (…) [Yvette] Cooper's agents have already been "buying"
interviews on local radio stations to exclude local protesters. They have now bought a national newspaper. That
taxpayers' money is used to further the interests of private developers against local homeowners is bad enough.
That such money should be spent inducing newspapers to dress public relations as journalism in a ministerial spat
with the Treasury is close to sleaze.’ 31
Legal Action
In March 2007, residents in the suburb of Derker, Oldham, won a high court ruling preventing their
homes from being the subject of Compulsory Purchase Orders - stopping the planned demolition of 588
homes. 32 In September 2006, disabled ground mother Miss Pascoe won a high court ruling, quashing the
planned demolition of 400 homes in the Edge Lane area of Liverpool. The judge ruled that Mr Prescott
had acted illegally, as well as the fact Miss Pascoe’s Human Rights were violated. Despite this, a year later,
English Partnerships and Liverpool Land (the organisations behind the pathfinder demolitions) began to
issue a new compulsory purchase order, seemingly identical the one deemed illegal by the High Court.
‘Ms Pascoe's solicitor has already called English Partnerships' determination to persist in the teeth of an adverse
High Court judgement "oppressive and reckless." MPs might care to ask why another £2 million of public money is
to be poured away cynically on such poor legal grounds, clearly in the hope that the protracted struggle now begun
either kills its opponents or by reducing them to penury forces them to sell up.’ 33
National Audit Office
A ‘damning’ report in September 2007, criticised the Pathfinder programme in its value for money and
success in reaching its aims. Edward Leigh, chairman of the public accounts committee said: ‘There is no
evidence that Pathfinders are bringing about improved social cohesion and, although low demand for properties
has fallen in the Pathfinder areas, it hasn’t fallen as quickly as it has in the rest of the country. You have to wonder
if these areas would see the same or greater regeneration if left to their own devices.’ 34
27 http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news ... 08.article
28 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... attle.html
29 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... quiry.html
30 http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1150
31 http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree ... t.politics
32 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... attle.html
33 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthc ... thlog.html
34 http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news ... 84.article
________________________________________
Publications and Media
Newspapers
Charles Clover - Telegraph
This is a national disgrace. For the principle at stake is that an English person's home is their castle - unless it can
be proved that their home is unfit for habitation or needs to be sacrificed because it is in the way of some great
national project to which there is no obvious alternative. If Ms Pascoe loses this time, any home anywhere in the
country could be compulsorily purchased because its neighbours had been deemed defective. There can be few
more important environmental issues than the safeguards on people's homes. 35
The Prince of Wales criticised plans to demolish hundreds of Victorian and Edwardian terrace homes on a visit to
Liverpool. He told campaigners trying to save 400 houses in the streets where Ringo Starr, the Beatle, was born
that the houses should be saved. 36
Opposition and even Labour MPs have said it is a huge waste of public money. Jane Kennedy, the MP for Liverpool
Wavertree and a former minister, called the scheme "social cleansing". The Tories have called for it to be
scrapped. 37
Simon Jenkins - The Guardian
Once the red line is drawn, services vanish, vandalism and crime increase, values collapse, and residents who would
once have fought to stay become desperate to leave. Tenants are offered £1,000 to get out, while owners have
been receiving, on Rowntree Foundation figures, some £35,000 less than the market value prior to the clearance
decision. This technique, known in the 60s as "winkling", was once performed by the likes of Rachman. It is now
being performed by the state. Hutton describes it as "regeneration as a holistic intervention". I can see why this
passed the inaccuracy test. 38
The Sunday Times
Edward Leigh, the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, said that many residents felt that local authorities
had “ridden roughshod” over their communities, with little clear evidence of improvement. Landlords in some areas
bought empty houses earmarked for demolition in the hope of making a profit from compulsory purchase orders,
putting the overall bill up by £50 million over five years, the report said. (…)Eric Pickles, the Shadow Local
Government Secretary, said: “The Government is picking the taxpayer’s pocket to the tune of £2.2 billion to
bankroll some poorly thought-through scheme. The sheer scale of the demolitions taking place under Pathfinders is
environmentally, socially and financially wasteful.” 39
Books:
▪ Chris Allen - ‘Pathfinder’ - Sociology academic at Manchester University.
▪ Anna Minten - ‘Ground Control’ - About the privatization of council housing.
▪ Sarah Glynn - Where the half live’ - Housing failure of New Labour.
TV & Radio:
▪ You and Yours - BBC Radio 4
▪ Today Programme - BBC Radio 4
▪ Cheap Homes/Mischeif - BBC3
▪ Tonight with Trevor McDonald - ITV1: “To highlight criticism of the initiative, last month Michael
Nicholson reported for ITV's Tonight with Trevor McDonald as it repaired 29 Powis Street for £24,000
only £6,000 more than it would cost to demolish it.” 40
35 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthc ... thlog.html
36 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... attle.html
37 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... quiry.html
38 http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree ... t.politics
39 http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/p ... 836429.ece
40 http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2005/ ... oadcasting
________________________________________
Statistics
Vacancy Rates
A Communities and Local Government Report, showed that from 2002 to 2008 vacancy rates actually
rose in 4 pathfinder areas. The statistics, which only measured instances where property was vacated for
more than six months, showed a rise in vacancy levels in Hull & East Riding, Merseyside, Oldham-
Rochdale and North Staffordshire. The fact these statistics only include property which has been empty
for more than 6 months, shows that the long term threat of demolition in these areas is resulting in more
empty homes rather than fewer.
Also; ‘One of the primary objectives of the HMR programme is to close the gap in vacancy levels in pathfinder
areas compared to their regions by one third by 2010’. Figures show however, that vacancy levels in
pathfinder areas have fell by 8.1% from 2002 to 2008, whereas the rest of England has seen a fall of 8.6%.
Despite there being an overall fall, the objective to reduce the gap in empty homes between pathfinder
areas and the rest of country has not been achieved, and as actually worsened as a result of the pathfinder
schemes. And the target of closing the gap by a third by next year is extremely unlikely. 41
Shortage of New Builds & Cost of Compensation
A report named, ‘Value for money issues and the evaluation of the housing market renewal pathfinder
programme’, from the Communities and Local Government department, shows how despite the
demolitions of 615 houses in North Staffordshire from 2003 to 2007, only 2 new properties had been
built to replace them. In East Lancashire, 1178 homes had been demolished and replaced by a mere 16.
The report also shows a breakdown of costs involved in the pathfinder schemes from 2002 to 2008. It
shows that the highest proportion of spending is going towards the acquisition of houses before their
demolition (compensation), making up 32.4%. This works out at over £403 million of the £1.2 billion
spent up until 2008. 42
41 http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents ... 362819.pdf
42 http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents ... 362861.pdf

Grant Shapps 'accidentally' signed off demolition of Ringo Starr's house
Grant Shapps, the former Housing Minister, accidentally signed off a regeneration project without realising it would demolish the house in which Ringo Starr was born, a court heard today.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politic ... house.html

Today Government lawyers conceded at the High Court that the nationwide regeneration project was unlawful as it contradicted government policy, but argued that they could not backpedal because too much of the public money had already been spent.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politic ... house.html

Richard Harwood, barrister for SAVE Britain’s Heritage, argued that the regeneration project went against government policy to protect the historic terraces and amounted to a continuation of Pathfinder by stealth.

However, insisting that the unlawful decision was "potentially catastrophic" and should be quashed, Mr Harwood said the wrongly allocated grants should either be recouped from the councils or a condition imposed that they be spent on refurbishing properties.

But I also want to implement measures to tackle the “ghost streets” created by the last Government’s programme. On 9 May 2011, I announced a £30 million capital fund to help families trapped in abandoned streets resulting from the pathfinder demolition schemes. This funding was targeted at the five most challenged former housing market renewal areas—Merseyside, East Lancashire, North Staffordshire, Hull and Teesside—where the lowest quartile house prices have remained well below the average for that part of the country, and where surrounding housing markets are weak. As part of their bid, local councils were asked to set out clear exit strategies showing how former housing market renewal commitments could be unwound or transferred to other regeneration schemes.

Middlesbrough Council Executive led by Ray Mallon exit strategy was

USE THESE FUNDS TO DEMOLISH MORE HOUSING

MAYBE COPPINGER4PCC WILL USE THE LAND TO BUILD HIS PINK PALACE

COMMISSAR COPPINGER CLEVELAND POLICE FARCE HEADQUARTERS

Grant Shapps (Minister of State (Housing and Local Government), Communities and Local Government; Welwyn Hatfield, Conservative)

The last Government’s housing market renewal pathfinder programme imposed large scale Whitehall targets for demolition and clearance across the midlands and the north of England. The centrally driven schemes were often resented by local communities and created as many problems as they solved. This top-down approach has not worked, often resulting in blighted areas where large scale demolition and clearance projects have been stopped in their tracks, leaving some families isolated in abandoned streets.

There was widespread public controversy over an obsession with demolition over refurbishment, the lack of transparency of the pathfinder quangos, large profits by developers, the demolition of our nation’s Victorian heritage and perverse incentives being given to run down neighbourhoods.

The designation of areas for demolition effectively increased deprivation in those areas; many social landlords prepared the ground by “voiding” and boarding up properties. In turn, this undermined the housing market as mortgage lenders were unwilling to lend in such areas. Areas were effectively managed into decline—to make the notional benefits of wholesale demolition more attractive, ensuring a larger windfall gain for the state.

Local communities in some of the most deprived areas of the country were told they would see a transformation of their areas, which in reality amounted to bulldozing buildings and knocking down neighbourhoods, pitting neighbour against neighbour and leaving families trapped in abandoned streets. This was wrong.

As campaigning group Save Britain’s Heritage has remarked:

“From the start, pathfinder showed an appetite for destruction....The classic English terraced house was demonised as “obsolete”. Whole neighbourhoods were declared surplus at the keystroke of a consultant’s laptop. Bureaucratic arrogance reduced communities to inmates of a “Zoo”—Zone of Opportunity—for house builders. Statisticians assumed compulsory purchase and eviction for demolition were acceptable measures for householders in a property-owning democracy. Quite predictably, the cure turned out worse than the disease”.

The coalition Government are taking a different, more localist, approach. We are putting residents, local businesses and civic leaders in the driving seat and providing them with local rewards and incentives to drive refurbishment and renewal.

On 31 January 2011,1 announced a £5 million growth and housing market renewal transition revenue fund. The primary aim of this fund was to help safeguard and

develop expertise and capacity in key growth and former housing market renewal locations.

But I also want to implement measures to tackle the “ghost streets” created by the last Government’s programme. On 9 May 2011, I announced a £30 million capital fund to help families trapped in abandoned streets resulting from the pathfinder demolition schemes. This funding was targeted at the five most challenged former housing market renewal areas—Merseyside, East Lancashire, North Staffordshire, Hull and Teesside—where the lowest quartile house prices have remained well below the average for that part of the country, and where surrounding housing markets are weak. As part of their bid, local councils were asked to set out clear exit strategies showing how former housing market renewal commitments could be unwound or transferred to other regeneration schemes.

In response to the bids from local authorities, I have decided to make an additional £5.5 million available—bringing the total fund to £35.5 million. This means that all families in streets or blocks that are more than 50% vacant will be helped. This £35.5 million fund will be match funded by local councils in these five areas, giving overall funding of £71 million.
Table of Payments
Council Total Capital Grant (*)
Hyndburn £2.3m
Blackburn with Darwen £1.8m
Burnley £1.4m
Pendle £1.4m
Hull £3.3m
Liverpool £9.3m
Sefton £3.4m
Wirral £2.7m
Stoke-on-Trent £3.6m
Middlesbrough £2.4m
Hartlepool £2.0m
Stockton-on-Tees £1.5m
Redcar and Cleveland £0.3m
Total Capital Payments £35.5m
(*)Rounded to the nearest £0.1 million

The payment of this transition funding and unwinding of remaining housing market renewal commitments therefore draws a line under the last Government’s flawed programme.

However, it is important that we continue to support housing and regeneration in places which have previously experienced severe housing market challenges. My Department and the Homes and Communities Agency will continue to work closely with all former housing market renewal areas, whether or not eligible to bid for the transition fund.

In addition to ending the Whitehall obsession with demolitions, we are taking a series of steps to get empty homes back into beneficial use, as outlined in the Government’s housing strategy published on Monday 21 November.

http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wms/?id=2 ... 24b.30WS.1

Barbara Yafano’s family lived for generations in St Hilda’s – Middlesbrough’s former industrial hub – known locally as "over the border". But in 2004, the council unveiled a major regeneration initiative that decimated the area, despite few redevelopment plans being in place. Barbara and husband John fought long and hard for a fair compensation deal that would not leave them seriously out of pocket, a complaint of many of those who fought housing market renewal. In the meantime, their neighbourhood was demolished around them and they endured years of antisocial behaviour from squatters and drug users attracted to the empty houses. They have now moved to a property in another part of Middlesbrough. “It was like living in a warzone really,” said Barbara. “We put up with a lot and life was very difficult.”

In pictures: the end of housing market renewal
Ciara Leeming revisits the areas affected by the pathfinders scheme after it was wound up by the government four years earlier than planned

Pathfinder was a radical idea by the Labour Government to revitalise depressed urban areas of England & Wales. It's plan was to demolish old housing stock - mainly terraced housing and replace it with new build homes and community areas in which it was hoped people would flourish.

The properties involved were a combination of owner occupied homes, privately rented and council tenanted dwellings.

Initiated in 2002 the £2.2 billion plan was initially embraced by the population but began to suffer problems as the housing market collapsed and private investors pulled out of the scheme. The Government also failed to understand how people were attached to their neighbourhoods. A number of people - mainly owners-occupiers didn't want to sell up and leave and made life difficult for developers who were unable to commence demolition.

Pathfinder was finally cancelled by the Coalition Government in 2011 leaving many of the project areas without the promised regeneration, but blighting the communities it touched with thousands of empty properties shuttered up.

In Middlesborough some residents refused to abandon their homes and still remain amongst the empty streets. Little is seen of them but the evidence of their existence can sometimes be found.......

http://sibarberphotographer.blogspot.co ... gh-my.html

DJ Johne | 03/06/2011 5:00 pm

I think it's about time Ed Milband and some of his Labour MP's stopped whinging about the demise of the HMR Pathfinder, after all it was John Prescott who listened to Brendan Nevin and his ideas on how thought he could rescue the failing housing market in the UK and neither of them had any ideas or practical experience on how it might work!

That has been the problem from the word go and still is to this day!

I have been dealing personally with many of the community groups in England since 2002 and the main area of complaint from them (and this still is by the way), is that the politicians and the professionals, DO NOT LISTEN TO THEIR (the communities) CONCERNS AND IDEAS!

They feel that they have been ignored by the previous Labour Government team (never answered emails and letters) and are more or less being ignored by the current co-alition government!

After all it is 'their' communitites and 'their' homes and 'their' shops, so why shouldnt 'they' have a BIG say in how their community should be redeveloped?

They have been ignored by all the political leaders in Liverpool, despite many promises by the current Leader, Joe Anderson, to help them, but all he is does is to continue to ignore them. His predecessor, Warren Bradley did exacty the same!

Ray Mallon and his political team in Middlesbrough have done exactly the same with the people of Gresham, who feel that they have been let down and forgotten, whilst the political masters move them about like pawns in a game of chess!

There are many other ways of dealing with this huge problem of wasted housing and it's about time that the politcians concerned, pinned back their lugoles and listened to what the people want and then get on with it and so something positive about it or are they all too busy whinging about their expenses and trying to find other ways of fiddling them!

So come on David Cameron, Ed Milliband and Nick Clegg, see if you can do something right for a change and engage with these forgotten people who have and are still living in slums, which have been created by academics, politcians and housing/regeneration professionals, who have completey forgotten what customer care is all about and more so forgotten what terrible conditions these people live in.
I can tell you of several ways to resolve this disgusting 21st Century housing problem, if you care to contact me!
It will not cost millions of pounds to reslove either and will 'kick start the local housing market and the local economy, so it's a Win Win situation!

But, I'll bet that I get ignored, just like those people do!!!

http://www.insidehousing.co.uk/home/new ... 55.article