Build-it-yourself housing project was a huge success in 1970s Lewisham | Letters

An uplifting article by Phineas Harper about plans for self-build houses by Lewisham council in London (Free land for those who will build social homes on it. Is this the radical solution to the UK’s housing problem?, 8 October).

The original 1970s Lewisham self-build scheme that he mentions, using methods developed by the German architect Walter Segal, was proposed by a friend of mine, Brian Richardson, who was a Lewisham council architect at the time.

Brian persuaded the local authority to offer people on the council house waiting list the materials to build their own homes, with advice from him. They had no building skills, but they worked evenings and weekends, and built homes and a community.

Brian often said that the most successful outcome was the changes to the builders themselves in terms of pride and self-confidence.

Just search for “Walter’s Way Lewisham” online for contemporary and more recent videos and the views of the builders themselves.
John Banks
Ledbury, Herefordshire

Phineas Harper is right to highlight Lewisham council’s proposals to make publicly owned land available for community-led social housing. From a valuation perspective, the most interesting aspect to me is viability. Land value is often a significant barrier to delivering social housing, particularly on smaller sites that can involve almost as much time, effort and cost as larger schemes, and are therefore difficult for developers and housing associations to justify taking on.

This will not replace established affordable housing delivery, and there will still be challenges around building costs, funding, planning and delivery. But it could provide a practical way to unlock smaller, community-led schemes.

Sometimes improving viability is not about increasing development value, but reducing the cost of the land itself. I will be interested to see whether other local authorities follow suit.
Jonathan Pearson
RICS registered valuer, Residentially Chartered Surveyors