Social Housing is a new form of housing delivery in South Africa that has fast gained recognition in the housing sector in the last ten years, because it has proven to be a viable option in solving the housing shortage. It is an affordable option because the government provides funding through subsidies and profit is not earned from the rents paid. Social housing can be in the form of houses, block of flats or townhouses located in Greenfield developments, infill areas or in inner city blocks that are purchased or renovated. The buildings are managed by social housing institutions through public and private funding. This dissertation evaluated and compared two types of social housing schemes, namely, Greenfield developments and refurbished/converted buildings in terms of their affordability, management and the quality of the built environment. The evaluation was done by analyzing their similarities and differences, to reveal which typology delivers a better quality living environment. It also investigated the type of social housing development most suitable for the South African environment and meets the objectives and principles of social housing. The study analysed four existing social housing developments, three in Durban and one in Pietermaritzburg, two were refurbished buildings, and the other two, Greenfield developments. Information was collected by conducting household surveys, interviews and discussions with the residents and management of the housing schemes. The case studies revealed interesting contrasts as well as some important similarities among the social housing schemes. The main findings showed both typologies were functional in providing affordable housing though Greenfield developments proved to be a better alternative in terms of effective management, tenant participation and better built environments. The study proposes recommendations to improve social housing delivery in South Africa such as making social housing affordable, strategies for affordable security and safety systems; energy efficient designs and considerations for persons with special needs. / Thesis (M.Housing)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

No description available.

Homeownership and Opportunity for People Everywhere VI (HOPE VI) is dramatically changing the face of public housing. The HOPE VI program proposes to replace barracks-style and high rise apartments with a new public housing landscape built on the planning principles of New Urbanism: small-scale developments of single family homes and townhouses with front lawns and porches. Academic and governmental analyses of HOPE VI have used economic, political, and social perspectives to analyze this significant financial investment, radical landscape alteration, and change in residents lives. This dissertation analyzes the process of HOPE VI and its attendant landscapes using a critical humanist perspective focused on the human, emotional dimension of public housing policy. By bringing together geography, psychology, sociology, and philosophy literatures on emotion with geographic literatures on critical humanism and the cultural landscape this dissertation shows that specific emotions such as disgust, fear, shame, and enjoyment permeate, shape, and direct public housing policy and appearance in different places and across time. More specifically, the dissertation shows that 1) disgust, fear, shame, and enjoyment constitute both the political and economic logic essential to HOPE VI and 2) disgust, fear, shame, and enjoyment are articulated through and crystallized in reactions to the public housing landscape its aesthetic and social context. The overall contribution of the project is to first, challenge the binaries that often structure academic and governmental analyses of HOPE VI including rational-emotional, outsiders-residents, creation-implementation, and national-local. In challenging these binaries, the project offers an alternative way to think about and understand HOPE VI and housing policy. And second, the dissertation contributes to the methods literature by exploring how to analyze emotion through discourse analysis and how to ask people about emotions.

This thesis examines the manner in which a policy objective is qualified in execution by the requirements of interministerial collaboration in Cabinet, and the pressures of individual departmental interest. Housing policy in England and Wales from 1945 to 1951 serves as the central focus of the study. Wherever possible, the events surrounding the policy are presented and considered in chronological order. In the first section, the allocation of responsibility for housing and the development of the policy are considered. The thesis then examines some specific problems encountered during the implementation of the policy. Next, it provides an account of the factors which lead to the adoption of cuts in the housing programme and the imposition of greater central control. Finally, the thesis examines the means employed by the Ministry of Health to re-establish its autonomy and restore the housing programme to its previous level. The thesis concludes that the postwar housing policy was adversely effected by both the design of the policy and the means of implementation. There were several erroneous assumptions and unresolved issues in the policy designed by the Coalition Government. The effects of these were exacerbated by the action or inaction of Labour. The inability of the Labour Government to coordinate the activities of departments during the implementation of the housing and reconstruction policies resulted in an overloaded building industry. There was a requirement for housing starts and other construction activity to be related to the availability of the factors of production. This, in turn, implied a decrease of departmental autonomy to allow for the necessary central coordination. For a number of reasons, the Labour Government did not introduce the measures necessary to ensure that this coordination took place until late in 1947. Even at this juncture, with the economy and the housing programme in a critical state, the limitations of central control were evident. The study is based on material contained in the government documents of the period. This was supplemented by interviews with government officials and the biographies of the major participants in the Labour Government.

The issue of residents' satisfaction with their dwelling units and their neighbourhoods is one of the growing interests in many arenas. The aim of this dissertation was to examine the quality of life of residents in Briardale, Newlands West. The prime intention was to investigate the influence of various life domains on quality of life of the sample populations. The sample population was stratified into three groups, viz. Dwellers in single cottages, semi-detached and duplex units and the flats sector. It has been revealed in the final analysis that neighbourhood deficits influenced neighbourhood satisfaction. It was further established that in addition to dwelling and neighbourhood deficits, socio-economic characteristics influenced the quality of life of residents. The flat dwellers were dissatisfied with their environment and being renters, this influenced their quality of life. Unemployment was highest among this sector. The salient reason for dissatisfaction amongst most residents was the lack of recreational and entertainment facilities, cultural and neighbourhood organizations and the poor quality of the flats and duplex units. The greatest degree of interaction with the neighbours was amongst the flat dwellers and the lowest level of community participation was also among this group. The residents had no confidence in the local civic groups since these groups had done very little in the last decade to improve their quality of life. A great degree of dissatisfaction arose because none of the residents were consulted about their housing needs prior to occupying their dwellings. In spite of the dissatisfactions expressed, most of the residents preferred to remain in this area because of its easy accessibility. In the light of the above, various suggestions and recommendations are tendered in the hope that all stakeholders (planners, policy makers, civic movements and consumers) can utilize this information to improve the quality of life of all residents in the country. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1996.

Abstract Where and how people live in later life is of vital importance to their wellbeing. Yet there has been very little critical attention in gerontology to the growth of large residential complexes being built by developers on urban fringes across Australia. There is no coherent policy relating to older people’s accommodation, and a general absence in understanding the capacity of these purpose built environments to meet the needs of older people. Further, there is a lack of research that represents the intricate interplay of factors that informs the provision of residential complexes. This research aims to address the critical need to understand the reality of older people’s lives within these spaces of ageing. It seeks to do this by exploring the experiences and meaning older people resident in these complexes attach to these spaces, as well as investigating the views and knowledge of those responsible for their design and production. A spatial framework, directly informed by Henri Lefebvre’s theory of social space, provides a holistic means to integrate both the structural and humanistic dimensions of space. This framework guided an exploration of the working knowledge of the professionals involved in the production of residential complexes, as well as how older people use, and create meaning in this living environment. The qualitative research design facilitated the analysis of interviews with professionals and older people, as well as documents and working papers in order to gain a rich understanding of the different dimensions that make up the production of, and life within, residential complexes. The research identified a broad range of implications in relation to the policy and practice of building residential complexes for older people. Of particular note is that the working knowledge of those responsible for the provision of residential complexes is underpinned by a stereotypical approach to ageing which affects their attitudes and assumptions. This is part of a complex array of factors including ageism, the dominance of business acumen, and humanism all resulting in a cultural acceptance of older people’s accommodation as separate. These findings prompt consideration of who is planning for whom, and who benefits? Findings suggest that for older people residential complexes are an ambiguous place, characterised by tensions. For some residents, the space provides both security and community, enabling them to engage with occupations and relationships. However, for others, the space is limiting, compromising their ability to retain meaning in their lives. In this way, residential complexes are both an enabling and a constraining environment. These findings highlight the inherent difficulty of providing one dominant model for a population with a broad range of needs, experiences and expectations. Whatever their age older people continue to produce space, and this is not only about keeping the past alive, but keeping in touch with the whole of their lives. This entails continuing to form relationships and connecting to the environment, whether that is a garden, the bush or inner city life; and through the signification of objects as both an expression of connection, loss and absence. To reinforce the heterogeneity of older people, place and space for some was not important. This research has important implications for developing policy on ageing and planning the built environment, as well for the application of the theory of social space. Of note is the power and pervasiveness of ageism within professions responsible for the conception and production of residential complexes, and the strength of the dissonance between accommodation, support and care for older people. Important insights were gained about older people’s use and meaning of their space, notably the need to recognise micro agency and occupation throughout the life course. This thesis draws attention to the complexity of place and space in regard to older people and their living environments and challenges research that adopts a more singular approach. Finally, use of Lefebvre’s work to drive the approach adopted in this study is a major strength. In particular, the operationalisation of Lefebvre’s triad of social space in a social context provides a theoretical contribution to social theory, one to be taken up by gerontology and social science.

Bibliography: leaves 244-276. / xvi, 276 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / This thesis investigates economic policy changes and their effects on the urban housing situation in China both under the centrally planned economy and during the period of urban housing system reforms since 1978. It considers two main housing models: government intervention in urban housing based on a market economy, and government houring control under a centrally planned economy. It takes China as a case to discuss transition issues from the centrally planned housing system to the market-oriented one. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Centre for Asian Studies, 1998

Abstract Where and how people live in later life is of vital importance to their wellbeing. Yet there has been very little critical attention in gerontology to the growth of large residential complexes being built by developers on urban fringes across Australia. There is no coherent policy relating to older people’s accommodation, and a general absence in understanding the capacity of these purpose built environments to meet the needs of older people. Further, there is a lack of research that represents the intricate interplay of factors that informs the provision of residential complexes. This research aims to address the critical need to understand the reality of older people’s lives within these spaces of ageing. It seeks to do this by exploring the experiences and meaning older people resident in these complexes attach to these spaces, as well as investigating the views and knowledge of those responsible for their design and production. A spatial framework, directly informed by Henri Lefebvre’s theory of social space, provides a holistic means to integrate both the structural and humanistic dimensions of space. This framework guided an exploration of the working knowledge of the professionals involved in the production of residential complexes, as well as how older people use, and create meaning in this living environment. The qualitative research design facilitated the analysis of interviews with professionals and older people, as well as documents and working papers in order to gain a rich understanding of the different dimensions that make up the production of, and life within, residential complexes. The research identified a broad range of implications in relation to the policy and practice of building residential complexes for older people. Of particular note is that the working knowledge of those responsible for the provision of residential complexes is underpinned by a stereotypical approach to ageing which affects their attitudes and assumptions. This is part of a complex array of factors including ageism, the dominance of business acumen, and humanism all resulting in a cultural acceptance of older people’s accommodation as separate. These findings prompt consideration of who is planning for whom, and who benefits? Findings suggest that for older people residential complexes are an ambiguous place, characterised by tensions. For some residents, the space provides both security and community, enabling them to engage with occupations and relationships. However, for others, the space is limiting, compromising their ability to retain meaning in their lives. In this way, residential complexes are both an enabling and a constraining environment. These findings highlight the inherent difficulty of providing one dominant model for a population with a broad range of needs, experiences and expectations. Whatever their age older people continue to produce space, and this is not only about keeping the past alive, but keeping in touch with the whole of their lives. This entails continuing to form relationships and connecting to the environment, whether that is a garden, the bush or inner city life; and through the signification of objects as both an expression of connection, loss and absence. To reinforce the heterogeneity of older people, place and space for some was not important. This research has important implications for developing policy on ageing and planning the built environment, as well for the application of the theory of social space. Of note is the power and pervasiveness of ageism within professions responsible for the conception and production of residential complexes, and the strength of the dissonance between accommodation, support and care for older people. Important insights were gained about older people’s use and meaning of their space, notably the need to recognise micro agency and occupation throughout the life course. This thesis draws attention to the complexity of place and space in regard to older people and their living environments and challenges research that adopts a more singular approach. Finally, use of Lefebvre’s work to drive the approach adopted in this study is a major strength. In particular, the operationalisation of Lefebvre’s triad of social space in a social context provides a theoretical contribution to social theory, one to be taken up by gerontology and social science.

Bibliography: leaves 244-276. / xvi, 276 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / This thesis investigates economic policy changes and their effects on the urban housing situation in China both under the centrally planned economy and during the period of urban housing system reforms since 1978. It considers two main housing models: government intervention in urban housing based on a market economy, and government houring control under a centrally planned economy. It takes China as a case to discuss transition issues from the centrally planned housing system to the market-oriented one. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Centre for Asian Studies, 1998

Thesis (Ph.D.)--York University, 2006. Graduate Programme in Environmental Studies. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 347-399). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=1&did=1251837401&SrchMode=1&sid=24&Fmt=2&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1195577142&clientId=5220