Alan MIDDLETON and Jim LOW
Peripheral Housing Estates in Britain
In Britain, peripheral atiUiorities (municipal) housing estates now present a serious problem but unlike inner city aj-eas tliey have received limited attention from local and central government. Peripheral estates ^e lai-ge areas of local authority housing isolated from employment, shopping and entertainment, built diu'ing a 30 year period following tlie second world war (1939-45).
Wliile it is nonnal Uiat Politicians and local government officials live at tlie peripheiy of tlie city, this is usually in comfortable low-density private housing SLibtirbs. The peripheral local aulhorily estates get neglected more than centinai ai-eas because they are not SLich high profile. Illese estates are often located away from main comniLiterjoumey-to-work routes and ai'e tlierefore not immediately visible to tliose. including politicians and local government oHlcials, traveling to work in the city centers. This situation is similar to the position of worldng class skim areas in the 19tli centuiy which were segregated from the commercial areas of Uie city and by passed by Uie middle class.
The Post-War Situation
In 1945, at tlie end of the war, Britain was faced witli a massive housing shoi-tage. Al3out 475,000 houses had been destroyed or made pennanently uninhabitalole diiring. hostilities. For example, in a city such as Hull witli a housing stock of 95,000 imits in 1939 only 5,000 houses escaped any damage. In addition. there were still urgent problems in I'elation to overcrowding and slum clearance. Tlie 1951 census revealed Uiat 45 percent were withoutone. That represented some 4.850,000 households in England and Wales.
To add to Uiis, tliere had been an increase in the nmnber of households during tlie wai- witli over 2 million maiTiages. Set against this background Uie need to create new housing was at crisis level, and thus the constmction of local authority housing was marked by its scale and speed. During Uie period 1946-57 about 2 million local authority houses and flats were built in Britain.
The post-war period provided botli the impetus and Uie opportunity for experimenting wiUi non-tradiUonal meUiods of mass house building. There were shortage of major materials, bricks, Umber and steel affecting Uie loLiilding of hoLises and (lats. In addition, all site labour was scarce, paiticulaiiy skilled brickla-yei-s (since the 18th century, brick had been the major ti-aditional method for housing construction in England). However. Uie local authorities regarded nearly all non-tradiUonal houses as inferior, and although some systems met wiUi more success than oUiers, local au-UioriUes were prepared to use non-traditional housing only in cases of real necessity. Many non-traditional houses were regaixled as less attractive, and alUiough many difle-rent types and materials were initially experimented with, Uie predominance (and economics) was for concrete systems. Local auUiorities prefeired concrete houses, and ne-ai ly Uiree ümes as many were built compared to other systems. Hiey were regarded as jjreferable in appearance and also taking maintenance expectations into account, as low-cost. Frame houses vyith sheet cladding were especially unpopular, with feai-s about maintenance costs a major concern. However, the veiy objective of non-tradiUonal houses and flats, which were intended to economise in scarce resources and site labour (which in pail tliey achieved), created the image that
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Housiiig Housing estates Suburbs Great Britaux
In Britain, the peripheral Local Authority housing estates, built during Uie 30 years 1945-1975, now present serious problems. The ijitroduc-tion of non-traditional methods, tch getl-ier wiLh cheap and hasty use of (xnventional building without crq/i skills, (rat-trad) resulted in a wide range of hng-tenn construction problems.
Peripheral estates oßen lack community facilities aiid have a higher pro-poiiion of children, teenagers and lone parent families. while elderly poor are now presentiiig additional problems. Poverty has increased on outer estates during the 1980's, arid a high percentage ofresidei-its on such estates now feel unsafe from crime. Partnerships in whichpiü?lic andpri-vate sectors operate together with the lokal commwùty offer a nxodel for regeneration of peripheral estates. Viere have been isolated exaples of successful coirammiiy based approaches lo these problem estates but commwùty estate action requires co opei-alion from rw\ge of departnieiits in a local authority, especially hous-iiig deparlnients. and residents need to be involved at all stages of regeneration.
Alan Middleton. Jinx Low Primestna stanovanjska naselja v Britaniß
Stanovanja Stanovwyska naselja Predmesija Velika Britanija
VVeliki Britaniji predstavljajo dojies pivnesina občijiska stariovanjska obnvDČja. zgrajena v obdobju 1945-1975. velikproblem Družabništvo javnega in privatiiega sektoTja z lokalno upravo se kaže kot dober primer postopka obnove primestnih obniočij. Trenutno còstqjajo posameziü printeri uspešnega delovanja ti. pristopa ~lokalne skupnosti" pri resevaiyuprcòlematike teh obniočij. Revitalizacija primestnih sosesk zahteva dobro sodelovanje občinskih služb, predvsem stanovanjskega oddelka. Vvsehfazahob-nove pa je pomembno zagotoviti aktivno sodelovanje stanovalcev.

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they were cheap and poor quality. It was disappointment on costs tliat led to general disappointment with non-traditional methods.
TTie largely unforeseen problems associated with the experiment in non-traditional construction have only become apparent in recent years. The problems, however, have been compoLmded by tlie fact that during tlie 1980s local autliorities have had insufficient resources to tackle these problems. In turn Üie estal.es that have become unpopular and difilcult to let, ai'e increasingly fulfilling a residual housing role for those witli no choice of housing.
The problems currently facing non-traditional housing tend to be typical. The low level of insLilation together inefiective and inflexible heating systems result in severe dampness and condensation, 'fhe inability of tlie houses to retain heat results in high fuel bills when using tlie original healing installations which adds to the poverty of tlie residents. Residents complain of tlie difTiculty of keeping their homes wann, and often resort to Lising che-ap>er fonns of heating such as freestanding paralTin stoves which can not only be dangeroLis but add greatly to the condensation problem. Tlie effects of dampness and mould growth have a direct beaiing on Uie health of residents.
Concrete systems from the 1050s and 60s are now developing signs of corrosion to tlie concrete reinforcement and sulphate attack to ground floor slabs. Much of the housing of Ulis period have metal framed windows which, especially when poorly maintained, are draught and increase heat loss, llie internal layout of the flats is poor and they require Ivitchen and batliroom modernization. Soundproofing between dwellings is also of low standaixl in flats and is a widespread jjroblem. Improved security in individual flats is also required. Communal areas in blocks of flats are generally mistreated and neglected.
It is however not just non Lraditional housing tliat present prol^lems. hi
tlie 1950s the Conseivative Government planned to build in quantity, 300,000 houses per year. Local authorities were simultaneously encouraged in Government housing circulars to be economical. The result was that traditionally constructed houses were buflt cheaply and in haste. TTie appalling cost in tenns of rapid deterioration of cheap local autliority housing is now apparent. Much of Ulis poor quality housing is concentrated in the peripheral estates.
Problems of Peripheral Estates
It is not uncommon for residents living on peripheral estates to have tlie feeling of isolation and tliat they are living on a "forgotten estate". Busseivices can be poor and expensive adding to the sense of isolation. Tliere is generally a high level of dissatisfaction amongst residents, with tlie appearance of Uie estates, when open space and landscape are poorly maintained and the condition of roads and pavements are equally poor. There is criticism of Uie level of street cleaning and rubbish collection. All Üiese issues conspire to make a depressing and neglected environment.
llie level of car ownership in the peripheicil estates can be higher Üian in Uie inner city estates, even where income levels are siniilaj*. since they ai'e essenlial for mobility and access. The estates, however, were not designed for the level of present day car ownership and therefore
cannot accommodate the number of cai-s. 'Ulis creates problems of insufficient cai" parking, nuisance from pai'ked c^s, car rejjairs being carried out in Uie street and speeding ti-afTic. Wliere an estate is located between major roads, tralTic travelling through tlie estate, using it as a "rat run", causes serious problems. Many of the crimes on such estates are car related.
'Iliere tends to be a high percentage of children, teenagei-s and single parents on peripheral estates. The lack of faciliUes for teenagers is Üie gi'e-

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atest concern. Often tliere is concern to keep teenagers off the sti-eets and out of trouble. Teenagers gathering on the streets witli nothing to do has a considerable impact on residents, through fear of crime and concern for personal safety. The lack of provision for teenagers to-getlier witli unemployment, bad housing and deprivation have all been contributing factors that have led to outbreaks of violence on a number of peripheral estates in Britain, such as Blackbird Leys estate in Oxford, the Ely estate in Cardiff and the Hatcliffe estate in Bristol.
Shopping Facilities
Inner city estates have access to all city centre shopping, which usually includes cheap market shopping for weekly needs. The peripheral estates were generated by housing need which resulted in them being "mere housing estates" lacking community facilities, and although shopping malls or pai-ades were sometimes added to Uiem-at a fairly early stage of development, most facilities have remained inadequate.
niose living on outer estates have to travel considerable distances to city centre shops and even where tliere is a local supennai'ket. it may be so expensive as to make it unsuitable for families on low incomes. Tliey will normally have to travel to shopping centres which ai'e based in traditional villages which, as the city has expanded over time, have become part of tlie fabric of Uie city.
Often, however, bus routes will run on radial patterns, developed from travel-to-work patterns as people travelled into the city centre for employment, and these may not be conducive to easy access to newer peripheral shopping centres.
I^w car ownership can add to tliese problems, and car ownership becomes even lower where unemployment increases, lone-parent families predominate and where tlie elderly poor are a growing proportion
of the population. Motliers who have to rely on public ti-ansport have the additional problem of getting on and off busses, for example, with push chairs and children. In order to avoid Ulis they may walk long distances, tliereby adding to Uie time which it takes to cany out daily shopping and oUier needs.
Outer estates can have a population roughly Üiat of a small town. E:x-treme examples of this are in Glasgow Diumchapel. CasUemilk and Easter house but tliey are inevitably without Uie basic resources, services and cultui-al facilities Uiat one would nonnally expect to see in such an urban centi'e.
As poverty has I increased on outer estates Uiroughout the 1980s, such local shopping pai-ades that do exist have been advei-sely affected. Declining disposable income reduces Uie capacity oflocal shops to suivive, as local property taxes and rents inevitably remain Uie same or increase and wages have to be foimd for stuff, niese wages are depressed before they disappear altogether as Uie shops are forced out of business. The decline in competition eventually allows Uiose shops which survive to raise prices, raising tlie cost of living for residents or forcing tliem to travel to shops outsidé t he estate for daily shopping needs. In some ajceas, these pressures have had a positive impact, in that they can create Uie needs for Uie establish- • ment of community-owiied shops or co-operatives.
Shopping parades on inner city estates can SLiffer from Uie same problems, but residents will have easier access to alternatives on the pe-ripheiy of Uie estates or in Uie town centres. Tlie shops on Uie edges of these estates, which maybe located in the üaditional shopping centres of the long-disappeared villages referred to alx)ve, may also benefit from passing traffic as people travel to and from work and they Uierefore have a better chance of survival, for example in Glasgow Ban-owfield/ Parkhead. and Cowcaddens/City Centre; and in Biniiingham High-gate/City Centre markets.
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Employment and Unemployment
Hirough the period of development of outer estates, employment opportunities for people who live on thern were often heavily dependent on Uie existence and well-being of single industrial plants or a few major industries. The expansion of these estates coincided wiüi period of growth of car ownership in the United Kingdom and tlie manufacture of cars to meet the new demand. As a result, many residents on tlie estates become dependent on the fortunes of the major industiy, for example Goodyear in Drumcha-ppel; Hillman/Chrysler in Fergustic Pai-k; British Leyland in Northfield (Ingoldsby).
Wlien the motor industiy contracted in the 1980s, many people were tlirown out of work, the residents of some peripheral estates were disproportionately affects and access to local employment for young people became blocked. Cut off from other relatively job-rich ai-eas by tlie cost of transport, ti-avel in seaj'ch of work became pi'oblematic. For Uio-se wiüi skills, this was less of a problem, since their skills made access to employment èasier than it was for tliose witliout skills, and in some estates the sldll levels were relatively high. For those witliout skills or for young people coming into tlie job market for tlie first time at the end of the 1970s and Uiroughoutthe 1980s to tlie present time, the outer estates became like open prisons.
Inner estates are invariably in job-rich areas. The main employment proÌDlem on these estates is that Uie people who live on them cannotgain access to the jobs which are avail-alDle. even if they have relatively high levels of skills and education e.g. Highgate, Binningham; Glasgow Eastern Ai'ea Regeneration. If these estates are stigmatised, employers negative perception of those who live on tliem presents a baiTier to gaining a job. Wliere peripheral estates ai-e stigmatised, the isolation is compounded and Ihe possibilities of obtaining employment further re-
duced. With employment decline in major manufacturing industries such as the automobile industry, the peripheral estates are increasingly located in areas of job scarcity, and even when people do find employment the cost of travel makes taking a job more expensive than it is for tliose who live close to employment; that is, at constant levels of benefit across the city, jobs need to pay more to encourage peripheral residents to take them. For any given levels of benefit and wages, therefore, work which is low paid and involves travel is also less attractive to residents of outer estates.
Crime and Security
Tlie lack of employment for yoimg people, along with the scarcity of leisure and recreation opporttmi-ties, help to generate other social problems in the outer estates. One of tliese is the fear of crime.
One should expect fear of crime and level of crime to go hand in hand. Ulis is not necessai-ily tlie case. Hiere is evidence tliat although crime levels may be higher on inner city estates, the fear of crime and concern for personal security may te higher in tlie outer areas.
In two studies, of an inner and an outer estate in Binningham, both caiTied out by tlie Built Environment Development Centre. University of Central England (Ref. 1 & 2), it was deal" tliat a higher percentage of residents on the outer estate feel unsafe living on tlie estate, parti-culai-|y at night. On a number of indicators, tlie level of fear and insecurity was higher in the peripheral estate than the inner city estate where tlie incidence of recorded crime is twice as high. Although the figures which were available make precise compai'isons dilFicult, it would appeal- tliat actual levels of crime on the outer estate were less Uian half of tlie Binningham average in 1993. In addition, comparing recorded crime in the first six monüis of 1993 with those in 1994, which was immediately before Üie study was earned out, Üiere was a decline of more than 50 %. Never-
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theless the studies show that, at ni^t, over 40 % of the residents feel veiy unsafe on the streets of the estate and 78 % say they feel either veiy safe or a bit unsafe. These figures are higher than is found in inner city estate in Binningham which have a wider reputation for crime. During tlie day, tliere is less of a problem, witli 78 % saying tliey feel either safe or very safe coming to and from tlieir homes.
The residents on tlie estate were particularly worried about being mugged or robbed in the area. Ai'OLmd 38 % said they were veiy wonied about this and a further 33 % said they were quite worried. Only 5 % said they were not at all woiTied. Similarly, 38 % were veiy wonied about being physically attacked in the area and 28 % were quite worried. Only 6% said they were not alt all wonied about tliis. National studies have shown an increase in Uie-se kinds ofwoiries in recent yeai^, but tlie figures for Ulis estate suggest that the situation is worse than is found nationally, and, once again, tliese figures ai-e worse than those found on inner city estates in Birmingham.
People ai^e also concenti-ated about sexual assault. More tlian half of those who responded to the questionnaire said they were wonied about sexual assault ai-ound the area, 31 % of whom said tliey were veiy wonied. Only 13 % said they were not at all wonied.
The clllTlcult social and economic climate on Üiese estates has also created breeding grounds for racism. With respect to racial harassment on the peripheral estate, an unexpected picture emerged, on this estate, which is 94 % white and where only 1 % classify themselves as Asian, 32 % of the population' said that they were wonied about racial harassment around the area. However, what can be noled is that this level ofwony is twice that fouind on an inner city estate where the proportion of eÜmic minoiity population is four times higher.
An exceptionally high percentage also feel unsafe in tlieir own homes.
Almost one quarter feel veiy unsafe if they are in tlieir homes alone at night and 57 % feel either veiy im-safe or a bit unsafe. Once again, these figures are much higher than one would expect. Burglaiy is a major concern, with 84 % of Uiose who filled in tlie questionnaire saying tliat tliey were eitlierveiy wonied or quite worried about having tlieir homes broken into and something stolen; 56 % of residents were very wonied about tliis.
People are also woiried about violent and sexual attack in tlieir homes, aroLind 30 % are veiy worried about Ulis and a further 21 % are quite worried. The fact that around half Uie people on the estate have anxieties about Ulis must be a caLise for concern for public authorities.
This further emphasises Uie qties-tion as to why tlie feai" of crime should be so high, something which cannot be adeqtiately explained in this paper. However, it shoLild be noted Uiat Uie main non crime complaints which Uie police receive ai'e concemed wlUi children/youths congregaüng in the streets and causing general nuisance. This was a consistent feature of both tlie survey and Uie Planning for Real meetings and Uie threatening nature of these groups may be a contributing factor, even if no criminal activity is involved.
The police have indicated that Uiey are having difficulty in sustaining a policing level of one ofiicer per beat at Uie present Ume and that this will be even more dilficLiIt in the future. At Uie same time, there is some evidence of growing vigilantism on the estate. If police resources continue to decline, the people of the estate may wish to look at ways of developing community-based preventative pati'ols, without full police powers and in collal^o ration with the police, leading to the evoIuUon of a community policing model. In a situation where 71 % of Üie residents think that Uie ai'ea has a bad reputation and where 72 % are dissatisfied wiUi the efiectiveness of policing. Ulis option is at least worthy of discussion.
(S
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Health
Most large housing estates have clinics and health centres witliin them, but these facilities tend to be missing from tlie smaller estates. Wliere they are missing, travel for motliers with young children and the elderly is problematical. If tlie estates are stigmatised, doctors will be unwilling to visit at night. Even on tlie larger estates where there are healtli facilities, the distance across tlie estate makes visiting them problematical. The issue here is the time it takes to get to Uie facilities. Middle class areas in major cities are actually less likely to be provided for by tlie healUi service,, but for patients wiüi a cai" this does not provide difficulties. For people who depend on public transport or who ti'avel on foot, shorter distances to facilities can constitLite greater access problems tlian relatively long distances by car. Most planners tend to concentrate on spatial ar-rangenients, whereas people tend to plan their activities ai'OLmd üme schedules. Hie time tliat it takes to get to facilities is a more salient measure of access than distance, and the poor of peripheral estates ai'e once again disadvantaged in tills respect. Peripheral estates ai'e less likely to have access to a chemist's shop, particulai'ly tlie smaller ones.
play a crucial role by taking on the role of the enabler and taking responsibility for community based re-generation on individual estates. Partnership arrangements, in which the public, private and voluntary sectors operate together with the local communities offer a model for regeneration.
Tliere is, however, amongst residents a low level of knowledge and understanding of how changes can be brought about Residents can be seen as passive and apatlietic. There is still tlie long and well established view held by residents that it is the local autliority housing de-pailment tliat is responsible f or housing. Also residents are not fully awaj-e that regeneration of individual estates requires a range of de-pai-tments in an authority not just the housing department. Residents need to be involved at all stages from setting up tlie project to tlie implementation of the regeneration.
Prof. Alan Middleton, Associate Dean, The Faculty of the Built Environment, UCE Prof. Jim Low, Head of the Birmingham School of Architecture, The Faculty of the Built Environment, UCE
Community Based Regeneration
Tliere is a growing recognition tliat in oixler to take tlie range of problems facing local authority peripheral estates, a community based approach is wortli attempting together witli multi-agency investment. Tliere aie isolated examples of community based regeneration, particularly in Scotland. However, tliere are substantial dlfliculties in promoting commimity based regeneration, not least of all that local autliority professionals are resistant to tlie idea. Within local authorities there is a need to co-ordinate Uie departments to meet the range of problems facing peripheral estates. Housing, departments can
References
1.	Built Environment Development Centre, Ingoldsby: The Regeneration of tlie Ingoldsby Estate: Tlic View from the Community, University of Central England 1994
2.	Built Environment Development Centre. Migligate: The Regeneration of tlie Hlghgate Estate: Tlie View from tlie Community, University of Central England 1994