The UK housing crisis and garden villages
We are delighted to have Oxford City Council's Executive Director, Regeneration and Housing, David Edwards speaking at our Future Cities Forum on 6th March 2017 on the government's plan to create new garden villages as a way of helping to solve the housing crisis.
He will be describing a development just six miles outside Oxford in the Cotswolds, which is one of the proposed villages that will provide 2,000 new homes and a science park.
His talk will follow BBC presenter and historian Dan Cruickshank speaking on the topic 'Houses: past, present and future'.
David Edwards in his role at Oxford City Council is overseeing the development of the Westgate Shopping Centre. Previously he was HCA Director for the South East and English Partnerships Director for the South of England. He worked for 10 years in the private sector as a director for Arup, the consulting engineers.
The Guardian reported in the autumn that the Conservative government's housebuilding programme of the 1950's puts current attempts to solve supply to shame.
The UK government has now announced £6 million to be spent across the UK on creating 17 new garden towns and villages with more funds needed to cover infrastructure.
Up to 10,000 new properties are to be built to ease the housing crisis in the UK in villages and towns from Essex to Cornwall and Merseyside.
Dame Kate Barker who led the housing review in 2004 states that the developments are a good start to the housing crisis resolution. However, some critics question whether the developments will create a significant boost to local economies and will damage the countryside's character.