In The Guardian today:
They share tools, toys – and are planning their own hydroelectric plant. But is a new wave of DIY homes the answer to the housing crisis? Oliver Wainwright visits two pioneering northern co-ops to find out.
- Children play in the road, overlooked by adults preparing the evening’s vegan meal beneath the lofty pitched roof of the common house kitchen.
- The place has the holiday atmosphere and dazzling white streets of a Greek island town, but in fact we’re just outside Lancaster.
- A new co-housing development of 41 homes has just been completed here – and all without a developer in sight.
- By sharing facilities [they aim to reduce] costs and environmental impact. It has its own laundry and a workshop with shared tools.
- There are two guest bedrooms, freeing up space in individual houses, and a huge kitchen, dining room and living area in the common house, as well as a shared playroom.
- “It’s a great place to bring up kids,” says resident Huw Johnson. “We can be in the common house and send our daughter through to our house to collect something. It’s a place where she can learn to be independent and interact with adults.”
You can read the full article in The Guardian.