A Tale of Two Panels

Concrete Panel was the weapon for state to spread the construction of New Towns during the postwar period in strategic parts of the country in order to redistribute the workforce and economy. With high density housing, recreation facilities and the notion to forge community, the driving intention behind the self-contained nature of New Towns was to maximise the health, moral well-being, and productivity of the workforce.

1980 Housing Act gave the right for council tenants to purchase their own homes. However they were unable to do so in Thamesmead. The shared services, literally cast in concrete panels, prevented the privatisation and individualisation of each flat. Tenants were refused access to insurance and mortgage. By 1987, sales of flats in high density council housing under Right to Buy constituted only 5 percent of overall sales across the country. Indeed, Thamesmead, but also New Towns and council housing in general simply not designed to be privatised.

My proposal is the timber panel system made by local resident would act as the means to repair and rebuild what was once lost to privatisation and demolition. It also to generate a stream of revenue through the sale of the timber panels and feeding profits back to the local economy. Restoring the infrastructure that made collective urban life possible requires not only an alternative plan to demolition, but also an alternative economic framework which would act as a counterpoint to the imperatives of neoliberalism.

Buy One Get One Free

01 No.3 Freemasons Road

It was February 2021 when I met Scarlett and her daughter Amber for the first time. The UK is still on national lockdown during that month. Most of the shops were closed, only the places considered necessary were kept open.

Scarlett was selling fruit and veg boxes every Wednesday during the lockdown at No.3 Freemasons Road, Custom House, an area in the London Borough of Newham. She saw local people having trouble accessing affordable fresh vegetables when shops were closed, so she contacted a local wholesale dealer to provide food boxes every week in a unit space that the council allowed her to use.

Amber usually follows Scarlett to the unit space. Unlike adults who can have a chat when they buy the food box, Amber was quite lonely - not many children visiting the unit space so she usually just spent time watching cartoons on her iPad. That was the time I thought to make a toy library in this space and got the first collection of toys on Facebook Marketplace.

02 The Shop Goes On

The shutter of this unit had some issues - two middle columns were sinking into the ground caused by the ground settlement, and only the shutter in the middle can be opened. Scarlett reported this problem to the council and after waiting for several months, the repair team came to resurface the pavement. But they didn’t think lifting the shutter should be their job. In the end, Scarlett herself had to find someone to repair the shutter.

When the shutter was broken, activities inside the unit had been moved to outside.

03 Back In Business

After the shutter had been fixed, we rearranged the position of the furniture inside the unit. The area close to the door became the playing area as there was much more sunlight coming in  once the door was opened. When people pass by the shop they can easily see what happens inside the unit. It attracted more children to come in. The food box preparation area was moved to the back of the unit and more chairs were  brought to the space. When people came to collect food boxes they stayed much longer than before - they will sit down to enjoy a cup of tea and some fresh fruit.

I also noticed that more mothers brought their children to this unit. While their children play together, they can sit down to have a chat or drink tea. They were taking turns to look after the children so others could relax. Gradually, people began to bring things to share - the cake they made or toys they don’t need any more. This unit space became a collective childcare.

Design Proposal

04 Moving Out

The Newham council took back this unit space in October 2021. Scarlett had to move out and find a new space.

Ten Street Co-operative

This project rethinks the way for regeneration.

Liverpool ten street is an old industrial area, currently under the transformation to a series of luxury housing and creative hub. Architecture becomes a tool for economy, but those who benefited from these processes are the wealthy middle class. This project challenges this traditional way of regeneration, proposes converting an existing building to a community owned soft drink factory. Bringing money back to local means people have more initiative to decide the future of this area. The public green space not only for growing ingredients, but also for building community bonds. Fully automation process provides more time to spend on leisure for workers.

The existing building.

The proposal.