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Original poster

Council housing in the seventies

197 replies

rattymol · 02/04/2023 10:34

In the seventies one third of people in Britain lived in a council house. Council houses were built because of the terrible way private landlords behaved and the poor standard of housing many people lived in. We are returning to those days
4.5 million households privately rent with 23% of that housing deemed not to meet the decent homes standard. We need council housing again.

OP posts:
Blossomtoes · 02/04/2023 10:37

Yes we do.

Beebopdrop · 02/04/2023 10:38

No argument from me op. And more social rent homes are being sold each year through right to buy than are being built so the deficit is getting worse.

Did you see Panorama the other night? Private landlords turning 3 bed ex council homes into 6 bed bedsits, charging each tenant £900 a month. Which is mainly paid by housing benefit, aka tax payers. The homes were awful, obviously.

We need more money to go into it, planning reform, and gutsy politicians who actually say yes to building more homes rather than bowing to nimbys.

Original poster
rattymol · 02/04/2023 10:41

Yes I saw panorama. That was shocking how many people were crammed into those houses.

OP posts:

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Benefits
Yepanothernamechange · 02/04/2023 10:56

Yep we most certainly do, Op.

EgyptAdvice · 02/04/2023 10:58

It's awful. I'm a lone parent, on universal credit. My outgoings are more than what I bring home, I'm getting into so much debt that I'll have to focus on paying off when my son goes to school on September and I no longer have extortionate childcare fees to pay. Council housing may well have solved this for me but there's none available and there will always be someone on the list who has higher needs than me.

CaptainMyCaptain · 02/04/2023 11:01

Another agreement here. They should never have been sold off.

ifyougochasingrabbits · 02/04/2023 11:01

Yes we do and I can't believe anyone would be against it

Orangesandlemons77 · 02/04/2023 11:04

EgyptAdvice · 02/04/2023 10:58

It's awful. I'm a lone parent, on universal credit. My outgoings are more than what I bring home, I'm getting into so much debt that I'll have to focus on paying off when my son goes to school on September and I no longer have extortionate childcare fees to pay. Council housing may well have solved this for me but there's none available and there will always be someone on the list who has higher needs than me.

Hi there, if it helps there are debt charities like Payplan, they can stop the interest etc, might help you. Best wishes

MrsEvedder · 02/04/2023 11:07

There is such a stigma to council houses now- it used to be that it was just normal working class families lived in them but now there's no chance of getting one unless you are literally homeless. The effect on families and children from not having a secure, safe home is awful. One single parent family I know were evicted- had to be taken to court otherwise they would be making themselves homeless apparently, she looked at over 40 private rental homes and no one would take them despite having 6 months rent up front- there's such a demand for rents that if you're not working full time/ self employed etc you don't stand a chance of getting anywhere. They're in temporary accommodation and are still only medium band for council houses. Then I walk around our village and there are literally rows of empty houses that are holiday cottages. It is absolutely disgusting.

CaptainMyCaptain · 02/04/2023 11:11

Holiday cottages not only deprive locals of a home but result in villages becoming dormitories with no Post office, shop, school etc.

Trinity65 · 02/04/2023 11:12

rattymol · 02/04/2023 10:34

In the seventies one third of people in Britain lived in a council house. Council houses were built because of the terrible way private landlords behaved and the poor standard of housing many people lived in. We are returning to those days
4.5 million households privately rent with 23% of that housing deemed not to meet the decent homes standard. We need council housing again.

Totally agree with you OP

We moved in 1968 to a then brand new council estate. Reason was, that the house in East Greenwich Mum and Dad rented off a company, were being demolished to make a small estate on Woolwich Road.

kitsuneghost · 02/04/2023 11:31

We need to time limit what we have. They should be used for someone to get on their feet (say 2 years) the passed to the next person in need. This time can be increased if we get more properties in place.

We just afford the rosy view of them being for life as it was in olden times.

kitsuneghost · 02/04/2023 11:33

CaptainMyCaptain · 02/04/2023 11:11

Holiday cottages not only deprive locals of a home but result in villages becoming dormitories with no Post office, shop, school etc.

Totally agree. And anyone using air bnb and the like is to blame.

PritiPatelsMaker · 02/04/2023 11:34

We're getting so many reports of illegal evictions at work too.

Blossomtoes · 02/04/2023 11:34

kitsuneghost · 02/04/2023 11:31

We need to time limit what we have. They should be used for someone to get on their feet (say 2 years) the passed to the next person in need. This time can be increased if we get more properties in place.

We just afford the rosy view of them being for life as it was in olden times.

No we don’t. Social housing should be there for as long as people need it and that means for as long as people need a secure family home. If you move people on regardless of their circumstances it’s no better than the private rental market which you t should replace.

EgyptAdvice · 02/04/2023 11:34

kitsuneghost · 02/04/2023 11:31

We need to time limit what we have. They should be used for someone to get on their feet (say 2 years) the passed to the next person in need. This time can be increased if we get more properties in place.

We just afford the rosy view of them being for life as it was in olden times.

Not sure if I agree with the 2 years bit, but I know someone who lives in a council house and has done for 20 years, her and her husband now make probably 120k between them. It's difficult because how do you choose to kick someone out of their home? But equally knowing they earn as much as they do and are paying less than £400 a month on rent stings a little.

Redebs · 02/04/2023 11:35

rattymol · 02/04/2023 10:34

In the seventies one third of people in Britain lived in a council house. Council houses were built because of the terrible way private landlords behaved and the poor standard of housing many people lived in. We are returning to those days
4.5 million households privately rent with 23% of that housing deemed not to meet the decent homes standard. We need council housing again.

Yes, absolutely.

People are renting ex-council houses and paying enormous rents out of benefits. It's crazy.

Redebs · 02/04/2023 11:37

@EgyptAdvice where is anyone paying that little for renting a council house?

Original poster
rattymol · 02/04/2023 11:40

Building council housing alongside abolishing the right to buy, would save taxpayers money. We are all paying landlords extortionate rents through taxpayers funded housing benefits. It makes economic sense as well.

OP posts:
usernother · 02/04/2023 11:40

I agree. We also need to stop people being able to buy their council houses.

Beebopdrop · 02/04/2023 11:41

kitsuneghost · 02/04/2023 11:31

We need to time limit what we have. They should be used for someone to get on their feet (say 2 years) the passed to the next person in need. This time can be increased if we get more properties in place.

We just afford the rosy view of them being for life as it was in olden times.

Very interested to hear more about this idea.... What about the person who can't work to earn money because of a disability? The older retired person?

Tumbleweed101 · 02/04/2023 11:43

One of the main points of social housing was that it built communities of hard working but lower paid families. In other words- key workers - who are needed in all areas, including the most expensive. If we take away the fact they are long term tenancies then communities won't develop and they will just become slum stock as the tenants won't make them their own and maintain them inside.

More social housing is definitely needed. My own children in their early 20s aren't able to privately rent because the rents would take nearly all their earnings, even on studio/one bed properties. I rent a 3 bed council house and I certainly can't downsize until my adult children can afford to move out, therefore I haven't even got option to swap to allow another family with younger children to move in here while I move to a smaller property. The lack of affordable housing affects all movement of the housing chain whether bought, private rental or council rental.

Toddlerteaplease · 02/04/2023 11:44

My council has been very proactive in building more council houses. However they look very expensive. So I suspect won't remain with the council for long as they'll all get bought, and then rented out privately again. Particularly the ones in my area, which is almost all rental properties.

MrsEvedder · 02/04/2023 11:45

kitsuneghost
We need to time limit what we have. They should be used for someone to get on their feet (say 2 years) the passed to the next person in need. This time can be increased if we get more properties in place.

We just afford the rosy view of them being for life as it was in olden times.

Why? What's wrong with people being able to have a safe, secure house? Why is that now seen as a luxury, surely it's a basic necessity? Councils will make money out of them too, not to mention the money saved helping to pay extortionate private rents

EgyptAdvice · 02/04/2023 11:45

Redebs · 02/04/2023 11:37

@EgyptAdvice where is anyone paying that little for renting a council house?

Northampton