|
On
Monday,
workmen
started
to build
a block
of eight
flats
in Stockwell.
By today
they
are
expected
to have
them
FINISHED.
Hailed
as a
‘housing
revolution’,
the
ready-made
flats,
built
in Poland,
are
stacked
on top
of one
another
and
bolted
together
by six
workers
in just
FIVE
days.
According
to a
housing
association,
they
could
be the
answer
to South
London’s
dire
shortage
of affordable
housing.
Vicky
Wilks
reports
“This
is arguably
the
most
exciting
project
we have
undertaken”,
said
Charlie
Adams,
chief
executive
of The
Hyde
Group,
as two
lorries
pulled
into
wasteland
in Stockwell.
Each
vehicle
was
carrying
part
of the
ground
floor
of the
new
block
of “modular”
flats,
called
Barling
Court.
The
flats
were
built
in a
factory
in Krakow,
Poland,
and
it is
the
first
time
the
buildings
have
been
brought
over
to England.
The
four-storey
block
is made
up of
four
steel-framed
modules
bolted
together.
The
block
can
be put
up by
six
people
stacking
the
modules
on top
of one
another
–
with
no need
for
scaffolding.
They
can
just
as easily
be taken
down
and
moved
elsewhere.
It’s
a bit
like
an oversized
Meccano
or Lego
set,
but
a lot
more
sturdy.
When
erected,
the
block
contains
four
spacious
one-bedroom
and
four
two-bedroom
flats,
each
fitted
with
an Ikea
kitchen,
a bathroom
designed
by BUMA
and
a large
balcony
with
sliding
screens.
According
to Hyde,
they
are
built
to the
highest
quality,
using
the
most
up-to-date
technology.
The
housing
groupplans
to rent
the
flats,
on the
corner
of Jeffreys
Road
and
Larkhall
Lane,
to key
workers
such
as teachers,
nurses,
police
officers
and
firefighters.
On
their
average
wages,
these
workers
are
being
forced
out
of inner
London
areas
such
as Stockwell,
where
house
prices
have
rocketed
over
recent
years.
The
Stockwell
flats
will
not
be available
to buy
by will
be rented
at low
prices.
A one-bedroom
flat
will
cost
£100
a week
and
a two-bedroom
flat
will
cost
£148
a week,
including
service
charges.
Further
schemes
in the
pipeline
will
offer
people
the
chance
to buy
flats
through
shared
ownership
–
a scheme
where
people
initially
buy
a proportion
of their
home
and
rent
the
other
part.
The
homes
are
designed
to last
for
60 years,
so it
would
be possible
to take
out
a mortgage
to buy
them.
A
Hyde
spokeswoman
said:
“The
quality
is excelent.
The
speed
at which
they
can
go up
is fantastic
and
that
is mainly
because
a lot
of the
is done
within
the
architect’s
domain
and
within
the
factory.
“That
way,
less
work
is done
out
in the
elements
–
so workers
are
less
at the
mercy
of the
British
weather
than
if they
were
doing
traditional
build.
“The
speed
which
these
flats
go up
compared
to traditional
build
make
them
a totally
rapid
response”.
The
flats
are
also
estimated
to be
12 per
cent
cheaper
than
traditionally
built
ones.
Streatham
MP and
minister
for
housing
Keith
Hill
said:
“It’s
fantastic
to see
such
innovative
forms
of modern
methods
of construction
being
introduced
to tke
UK while
also
supporting
our
key
worker
housing
agenda.
“The
demand
for
housing
has
increased
over
time
and
so,
therefore,
have
our
goals.
We want
to build
more
homes,
in less
time
and
to higher
design
standards,
creating
sustainable
communities
that
will
stand
the
test
of time.
“And
schemes
such
as Barling
Court
are
helping
us to
meet
these
goals.
Not
only
do these
modules
mean
construction
time
is reduced
to five
days
–
minimising
disruption
to the
community
–
but
homes
can
be provided
at a
lower
cost
than
traditional
build
without
sacrificing
design
quality.
“I
hope
to see
more
developers
embracing
off-site
manufacturing
schemes
such
as this”.
Hyde
has
planning
permission
from
Southwark
council
for
a second
block
of 18
flats
in Wyndham
Road,
Camberwell.
There
are
also
plans
in the
pipeline
for
a third
block
to go
up in
Lingham
Street,
Stockwell.
An application
for
planning
permission
has
just
been
made
to Lambeth
council.
PREFABS
SPROUTED
UP ALL
OVER
NORTH
DOWNHAM...
Temporary
homes
that
can
be built
quickly
are
not
new
to South
London.
The
area
is home
to the
largest
estate
of prefabs
in the
South
of England.
In 1945-46,
prisoners
of war
built
the
Excalibur
Estate
in north
Downham
–
186
two-bedroom
detached
bungalows
with
their
own
gardens.
The
estate
was
a temporary
measure
built
for
those
whose
homes
had
been
bombed
out
in the
Second
World
War
and
for
servicement
who
came
back
to London
but
had
nowhere
to live.
Nearly
60 years
later,
it is
still
standing
and
is home
to a
tight-knit
community
bound
together
by repeated
fights
to save
their
homes
from
demolition.
Pensioner
Eileen
Hogwood
moved
into
her
Mordred
Road
prefab
in 1957
and
was
delighted
with
her
modern
new
home
that
had
a fridge,
gas
cooker
and
coal
fire.
She
said:
“It
was
like
going
to heaven
when
we had
lived
in a
couple
of rooms
with
no water
upstairs
and
an outside
toilet”.
Eileen
brought
up her
two
children
in the
prefab,
which
has
spacious
rooms
and
a large
back
garden.
Thirteen
years
ago,
tenants
on the
estate
formed
their
own
management
council,
so now
run
it themselves
with
money
from
landlord
Lewisham
council.
Over
recent
years,
they
have
fitted
central
heating
into
the
prefabs,
given
each
one
a new
front
door
and
done
repairs
to roofs.
They
are
allowed
to interview
and
choose
new
tenants,
creating
a strong
sense
of community.
Committee
member
of the
tenant
management
organisation
Jean
Pigden
said:
“Everybody
knows
everybody
here
and
everybody
speaks
to you”.
Eileen
added:
“If
you
see
somebody
strange,
they
stand
out
like
a sore
thumb”.
However,
the
women
admitted
there
were
pitfalls
to their
“temporary”
housing
–
they
can
be very
cold
in the
winter,
when
the
windows
freeze
inside,
and
very
hot
in the
summer.
But
they
wouldn’t
change
them
and
have
fought
off
several
attempts
for
the
area
to be
redeveloped
with
permanent
housing
proposed
by Lewisham
council.
They
are
currently
trying
to get
the
estate
registered
as listed
buildings
and
pointed
out
they
had
frequent
visitors
to look
at their
unusual
homes
–
most
recently
a group
of architects
from
Holland
who
visited
Downham
in March.
|
