PROPERTY
Partners help to build a future for India community
A community in one of the poorest parts of India is set to benefit from dozens of new homes – thanks to a partnership between independent property, construction and infrastructure consultancy Pick Everard and De Montfort University (DMU). The ‘Loving Community’ is
populated by more than 430 residents, 40 of which are former leprosy sufferers. They settled together on the outskirts of Ahmedabad over four decades ago through rejection from their native villages and fear of endangering the healthy population. DMU’s Square Mile India project
– in partnership with Leicester- based business Pick Everard – has been working to provide 50 homes for the community through fundraising and staff and student participation. DMU alumni and architectural assistant at Pick Everard, Nish Tailor, have been helping to project manage the life- changing scheme. Nish, who visited India in
January to coincide with construction work starting on the community’s fourth house, said: “Being involved in this project,
which is a powerful illustration of the social value of architecture, is truly an honour. “An architect’s job is to design buildings and create the physical environment in which people live. But the most successful architecture goes beyond building four walls – it changes people’s lives, and this project reflects that. “The ‘Loving Community’
residents had to fend for themselves after being outcast by society more than 40 years ago. Despite no longer being contagious due to the disease being treated, the stigma surrounding leprosy is so strong that they are still not welcome in their native villages.” Due to poor infrastructure and
local topography, the community is prone to flooding during the summer monsoons and many people have to leave their homes as they become uninhabitable.” Since February 2018, DMU’s
school of architecture has been working in collaboration with architect Anand Sonecha to develop designs to raise the homes above flood level. Construction began in early April 2018, with the cost of the works being met by fundraising.
De Montfort University students in Ahmedabad for the Loving Community project
‘The most successful architecture goes beyond building four walls – it changes people’s lives, and this project reflects that’
Each house costs approximately
£5,000 and these designs include the potential to be enhanced further when funding is available to families. Mark Charlton, Associate Head of
Public Engagement at DMU, said: “Working with the ‘Loving Community’ has not only been transformational for the families
involved but also our architecture students. “Being able to work on a project
like this and see the immediate benefit to the people who live there has been inspirational and we are grateful to our partners Pick Everard for their support on this incredible project.”
Regions now a key market for investors
While London has largely been the focus of the private rental sector (PRS), the regions are not just catching up but are set to overtake the capital within five years. So said James Mulcare of
Godwin Developments at the latest event by ProCon Nottinghamshire, the membership organisation for the regional property and construction sector. James was one of four key
speakers at the ProCon event called The Role of Build-to-Rent in the Regions and its Increasing Popularity, held at Trent Bridge with more than 100 people in attendance. James said: “The build to rent
and private rental sector (PRS) started in London, with international investors feeling comfortable with the capital. But then their sights turned to the regions. Now it is the regions which are hugely benefiting, and
be treating people as customers, not tenants in the future”. James Badley, of architects and Chamber member rg+p, which specialises in this sector, said good design in PRS and BTR is absolutely key – in order to create sustainable developments where people want to live. He said: “As most residential
Nottingham is one of many cities seeing growth in PRS and build to rent
this is set to continue. Major regional cities like Nottingham, Derby and Leicester are seeing a huge growth in both PRS and build to rent.” And while 90% of build to rent
is in city centre apartments, which typically attract millennials, renting a home is now appealing to families. While it was the 25 to 34- year-old bracket wanting to live in rented accommodation, the figures have shifted – with 35 to 49-year- olds wanting to rent on the rise.
“We are seeing more interest
from families wanting to rent because it’s easier when they choose to be close to amenities – such as schools and leisure,” added James. “Rather than focusing on city
centre apartments, there are increasing numbers of two and three bed houses under construction. “When developing build for
rent properties, we should keep the end user in mind. We should
accommodation is moving towards the upmarket hotel feel, it is very important that there is the high quality entrance space, high quality lounge space and outside space – with design not just dedicated to one area of the building. “We have to provide high
quality, robust, design which is attractive to tenants for a long- term proposition. People want to live in communities and when designing buildings, we have to be sure that we are providing solutions which will be here for many years to come.”
business network April 2019 79
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