The housing crisis is a prime example of the economic term market failure. Politicians of different stripes have followed policies, introduced by Margaret Thatcher, of increasing market forces in the housing market, by promoting private ownership of homes, and degrading social housing by selling it off with heavy subsidies – while promising but failing to […]
Greater Manchester’s social and solidarity economy revealed
Transform GM – an action research project looking to understand, map and promote ‘alternative’ economic activity in Greater Manchester (GM) – have just launched a new website mapping the social and solidarity economy (SSE). The SSE is made up of initiatives which prioritise other values over the economic bottom line and, unlike many charities, are […]
Developers are turning our heritage into profit, and we’re paying them for the pleasure of it
Flats at Crusader Works, one of the largest surviving textile mills and new luxury property venture by Capital & Centric where one bedroom apartments are going for heady sums upwards of £189,000, are on sale again. Since the project began the MEN has released a slew of articles gushing about how the development, on Chapeltown […]
Cities are recognising the dangers of speculation and big capital: what will Manchester’s politicians do next?
With thousands of housing units being built in across wards including Deansgate, Piccadilly and Ancoats, central areas of Manchester have now become a key investment ‘hot-spot’ for profit-seeking finance that cares little for local communities. This rampant speculation, surge in international investment and links to rising rents, displacement, homelessness and destruction of heritage and culture […]
The wrong kind of homeless: meet the teenagers crowdfunding for a place to call their own
Homelessness is something we’ve grown reluctantly accustomed to in Manchester over recent years. But when somebody says the word ‘homeless’, what is the image that springs to mind? Often it’s a ragged, single, middle-aged, white man with a beard, sleeping on the street. Caitlin and Shelby don’t fit this stereotype. Walking past them on Market […]
Campaigners collaborate to call for an end to Universal Credit based evictions
Members of four community campaign groups from Manchester joined forces yesterday to take part in a national day of action against Universal Credit. The paving stones of St Peter’s Square were covered with chalked slogans denouncing the controversial social security payment system, and a letter was presented to Manchester Town Hall demanding an end to […]
Endemic avoidance of payments to councils by property developers revealed, while affordable housing is sacrificed for profit
A comprehensive report on the huge sums of money fuelling the housing development boom in the city centre has revealed the scale of non-payment of development funding to the council: only 8% of housing development in Manchester City Centre included in the study had any Section 106 agreement at all. The lack of money collected […]
Manchester is putting Housing First – and the results look good
This article is part of ‘The Meteor Explores: Homelessness in Manchester‘ series. Decadence, procrastination and occasional nudity. It would be tricky to explain some of our private domestic activities to an imagined third-party observer, but anarchic indulgence is for many the wholly necessary backend to the economically functional front which the aforementioned observer would probably wish […]
Andy Burnham to hear of tenants’ struggles at Manchester Renters’ Forum
The ever increasing number of renters fed up with poor housing conditions, rising rents and bad landlords will have a chance to vent their frustrations at a Manchester Renters Forum on the 1 March. Two people with the power to influence the housing situation – Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, and Paul Dennett, City […]
Manchester squatters plan to take Tate Liverpool by storm
A group of Manchester squatters plan to take Tate Liverpool by storm this Friday, with a film screening and performances inspired by their personal experience of the housing crisis, homelessness and squatting in Manchester. The screening/performance, called Humanity Jam001, was created by the production team Established Beyond, who describe themselves as “video activists, creative minds […]