HSA Annual Conference 2020

Housing, devolution and localities: Inventing a future or more of the same?

The conference was originally scheduled to take place in April however due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it will now be held virtually across the month of November. The conference organisers have produced a FAQ document for those who were due to attend in April.

This conference will look at devolution in its broadest sense, meaning the transfer of decision-making powers between actors. It will question where the locus of decision-making is, and where it should be for housing-related issues. 

The challenges facing housing appear to be becoming more complex. This complexity has increased in terms of where the capacity for decision-making lies; within national governments, within devolved governments, at a regional level, or with local communities. It is also demonstrated in the widening set of issues facing both those who try and access social housing, and those who provide it. 

Many housing organisations now undertake a range of support roles such as employment support, digital education and wellbeing support, as well as diversifying business interests in order to meet these needs. In the UK, there is pressure on housing associations to remain viable organisations whilst at the same time ensuring access to secure and affordable housing for those who require it. The private sector remain the key actors in the provision of housing either in their role as developers or as landlords. The state has continued to support this growth through policies which fix housing as a key pillar of the UK economy.  

Drawing on research and analysis from within the UK and from overseas the event will focus on the locus of decision-making at various levels within the housing sector and asks whether a capacity for innovation enables the challenges faced by the housing market to be met more comprehensively. There are a number of arenas where this can be analysed including: devolution at a national level, devolution at a regional level, organisational decision-making, and community level organisation. 

This conference will provide the space for academic researchers, practitioners, and those working in housing policy and related areas to reflect and debate on these issues. We particularly welcome papers which help to answer the following questions:

• How far do national and regional settlements go in enabling cities to tackle issues of housing?
• How is evidence being used to inform decision-making? Is devolution making people’s lives better? How are organisations responding to challenges within the housing sector?
• How are communities changing as a result of devolved governance?
• What new models of delivery have been adopted by communities as a result of devolution?
• Do decision-making processes enable all individuals and communities who want to take part a chance for participation
• How do devolved nations work together in addressing housing challenges?
• Are individual nations creating their own identity in terms of their response to these challenges?
• Within devolved governments, how does joint working across departments function in order to effectively tackle challenges for the housing sector?  

Book your place for the conference sessions week by week using the menu on the left-hand side.  Plenary sessions are open to everyone, but to join the sessions you'll need to be a member.  Join now