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Housing cooperatives: From housing improvement to economic regeneration?

The perception of urban renewal as a predominantly physical planning issue dominated the post-war boom in municipal housing provision and coincided with a policy context demanding rapid results. The outcome of these dual pressures was large, peripheral housing schemes which were characterised by uniform provision and which lacked both the economic base and the service facilities that enable a viable community to thrive. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s these estates suffered a spiral of physical, social and economic decline which local authorities could not reverse. The endurance of depressed local economies combined with severely deteriorating housing and environmental conditions has in recent years led to grassroots community action to tackle these problems. One potential solution taken up by communities is the housing cooperative. This alternative has been especially popular in Glasgow where local communities have engaged the support of the District Council, the Housing Corporation and more recently Scottish Homes. This article will examine Glasgow's experience of housing cooperatives, exploring their potential to act as a catalyst for the development of community enterprise. The article considers the political, administrative and financial structures of housing cooperatives and examines their capacity to play such a catalytic economic development role. It also highlights the compatibility of the philosophical assumptions underlying both housing cooperatives and community enterprise. Finally, the article assesses the larger implications of the Glasgow experience and develops possible strategies to encourage expansion of the community enterprise sector.