Collaborations in Housing Design

Over the past three decades, Baylight Properties have been working in collaboration with some of the finest British architects to develop a series of award-winning housing projects, each one marked by a poetic sensitivity and thoughtful use of materials. This book addresses the particular challenges of building housing in the UK during this period, as well as the transformations that have taken place in the regulatory and cultural contexts.

Architects Stephen Bates, Philip Christou, Tom Emerson, Tony Fretton, David Kohn, Alex Lifschutz, Peter Salter, Alan Stanton and Stephen Taylor discuss the projects they have worked on with Baylight, reflecting the unique collaborative approach taken between developer and architect and revealing the aspirations, challenges and compromises that shaped the projects. The projects included are all informed by the extraordinarily rich history of homebuilding in Britain, from the great estates in London, to the patriarchal philanthropists (Port Sunlight, Bournville), to the Georgian and Victorian builder–developers, and architect–developers of the post-war years. The book concludes with a useful checklist of elements which contribute to creating successful homes, not just houses.

In an insightful introductory essay Architecture Foundation Director Ellis Woodman addresses the particular challenges of building housing in the UK over this period, and identifies the qualities that distinguish Baylight’s work from the vast majority of UK volume housebuilding.