Prize-winning UK council houses show social homes can be inspired

An elegant and ultra-energy-efficient street of new social homes should help inspire a new generation of public housing after it won Britain's most prestigious architecture prize, said housing experts on Wednesday.

The publicly-funded Goldsmith Street in the eastern city of Norwich was hailed as a "modest masterpiece" by judges as it became the first social housing development to win the Stirling Prize for Britain's best new building. "What is interesting about the Goldsmith Street development is it shows that councils can build high-quality housing in cities," Anthony Breach, an analyst with the Centre for Cities, a policy research charity, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

The win for Goldsmith Street, which was funded by Norwich City Council, comes as Britain faces sluggish public housebuilding and rising homelessness in many cities. England is failing to build the number of homes it needs, according to a briefing paper from parliament last year, but councils have dramatically reduced building over recent years in the face of budget cuts.

Councils completed more than 115,000 homes across England in 1975, government data show, but by 2018 they built just 2,640, adding to pressure for housing and especially affordable homes. More than 80,000 households were living in temporary accommodation in England last year, according to government data, while about 4,500 people were sleeping rough.

Goldsmith Street was designed to complement nearby Victorian-era homes and offer shared space for residents while its environmentally-friendly construction cuts energy bills, which is critical for reducing cities' planet-warming emissions. The homes are positioned to draw warmth from the sun, with thick walls retaining heat and consideration for energy efficiency stretching to small details such as the creation of external letterboxes to prevent draughts through the front door.

It also includes an alleyway for children to play in, while parking was pushed to the edges of the development to ensure that cars do not dominate the public space. "Goldsmith Street is a modest masterpiece," said the judges in a statement announcing the prize.

"These desirable, spacious, low-energy properties should be the norm for all council housing." The development should act as "a pioneering exemplar for other local authorities to follow" added Alan Jones, president of the Royal Institute of British Architects which organizes the Stirling Prize.

"Faced with a global climate emergency, the worst housing crisis for generations and crippling local authority cuts, Goldsmith Street is a beacon of hope," he said.

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