The aim of the post-war National Government was to build 1 million new homes in three years, ‘homes fit for heroes’. In fact this particular ambition was not achieved but across the generation between the Wars over one million new houses were built in Britain. This was a huge increase in the country’s housing stock and each of these new houses fell into one of three categories; private speculative housing, private subsidy housing and council housing. By the Addison Act (s.p.b.) the government donated large amounts of the national wealth to encourage building of homes for the working classes, this done by a generous subsidy system. New houses in the category of private speculative housing did not qualify for these although many such were built (see the current posts by the Cottingham Local History Society on Facebook). These houses were built to rent at rental levels beyond the pocket of working families or to sell to buyers taking advantage of the burgeoning building societies.
To regulate which properties were eligible for the government subsidy the relevant legislation stated the maximum room sizes which could qualify, anything beyond these dimensions didn’t qualify. Local authorities were required to conduct regular housing surveys, usually devolved to parish or district councils, and then compile a building programme to be sent to the regional housing commissioner (s.p.b.) to scrutinise. Subsidies were paid to the builder or local authority on completion of the properties.
However, as previously stated, political change brought change to this system. Firstly, by Chamberlain’s Housing Act (Conservative), 1923, and following the inflationary pressures of the early 1920s, eligible property sizes were reduced with builders or local authorities getting £75 from the government for each house built, or £120 but spread over six annual payments. The issue of local rates going up to help pay for such housing was also controversial and the 1923 Act stated that local rates were not to be increased to subsidise house building for the working classes.
(to be continued)