China Learns Lessons From UK Housing History

Thursday 8th December 2011

A delegation of leaders from China arrived in Epsom on Monday 5th December, to visit Rosebery Housing Association and learn more about social housing in the UK. Members of China's equivalent to our House of Lords were given a warm welcome by chief executive Deborah Pike and Rosebery staff.

Professor Hongmin Zhang, a leading housing expert in China and head of a research unit at Shanghai Academic of Social Sciences, Professor Nanshen Sun, Dean of Law School of Fudan University in Shanghai and four officials from the Councillors' Office of Shanghai Municipal Government, then visited properties on 1960s housing estate Longmead and new development Parkviews on Hook Road.

Sally Bayliss, Rosebery's head of housing, showed them how both estates are managed and what facilities are provided to tenants. They looked around the Multi Use Games Arena (MUGA), which demonstrated our commitment to working with young people to stop anti-social behaviour. They even got to meet Rosebery resident Mrs Johnson and her baby Daniel, who showed them into her two bedroom home.

Professor Hongmin Zhang said: "What we've learnt about social housing today from the visit to Rosebery has been very valuable for forming housing policies. We want to use the information to feed back to the Shanghai Government and push forward with housing initiatives. Rosebery shouldn't be surprised if the new learnings of today flow through to China's new housing policies.

"What I found most interesting was the different types of houses we saw. I've been amazed at how much space people have here - Shanghai has tiny spaces for people living in high rise blocks. That's why we want to build out in the provinces.

"Over the last 30 years, China has learnt a great deal from the UK in terms of housing. But even though we've learnt a lot, we still want to continue to learn more. This will help us for the future. I believe that housing associations like Rosebery provide a useful example of social housing for China and Shanghai."

China's population has grown by about one third in 30 years, from 1.0billion in 1982, to about 1.33billion today*. This has triggered a massive challenge in providing affordable homes. Following the visit to Rosebery, the delegates will use this new knowledge to advise Shanghai Municipal Government on future housing policies.

Deborah Pike, Rosebery's chief executive said: "We're delighted to have hosted this delegation of international visitors at Rosebery. It's important to learn from different sized organisations and they've had a true experience of how we run an organisation with its roots in the local community. We're very proud of the work we do at Rosebery and it's been a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate how we provide good quality homes and services that improve the lives of individuals, families and communities."

Posted by 0 for Rosebery Housing Association Ltd.