Council house
Council houses at Hackenthorpe, South
Yorkshire
The council house is a form of public or so-
cial housing in the United Kingdom. Council
houses were built and operated by local
councils to supply uncrowded, well built
homes on secure tenancies at below market
rents to primarily working class people.
Council house development began in the late
nineteenth century and peaked
in
the
mid-20th century. Mid-20th century council
housing
including many
large suburban
"council estates", and also many urban devel-
opments featuring tower blocks. Some of
these developments did not live up to the
hopes of their supporters, and now suffer
from urban blight.
Since 1979 the role of council housing has
been reduced by the introduction of right to
buy legislation, and a change of emphasis to
the development of new social housing by
housing associations. Nonetheless a substan-
tial part of the UK population still lives in
council housing. Approximately 40% of the
country’s social housing stock is owned by
local authorities, 15% is managed by arm’s
length management organisations, and 45%
by housing associations.[1] In Scotland, coun-
cil estates are known as “schemes.”
Origins
Almshouses
The Almshouse at Sherborne, Dorset
The documented history of social housing in
Britain starts with Almshouses which were
established from the 10th century, to provide
a place of residence for "poor, old and dis-
tressed folk". The first recorded Almshouse
was founded in York by King Athelstan, and
the oldest still in existence is the Hospital of
St. Cross in Winchester, dating to circa 1133.
Philanthropists
Council houses in Chatteris, Cambridgeshire
The pressure for decent housing increased
from overcrowding in the large cities during
the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century,
and many social commentators (such as
Octavia Hill) reported on the squalor, sick-
ness and perceived immorality that arose.
Some philanthropists had begun to provide
housing in tenement blocks, while some fact-
ory owners built entire villages for their
wo