Glenkerry House is a housing block on the Brownfield Estate in Poplar, London, England, designed by the studio of the controversial Brutalist architect

Ernő Goldfinger Ernő Goldfinger (11 September 1902 – 15 November 1987) was a Hungarian-born architect and designer of furniture. He moved to the United Kingdom in the 1930s, and became a key member of the Modernist architectural movement. He is most prom ...

. 14 storeys high, it stands in proximity to and complements the appearance of

Balfron Tower Balfron Tower is a 26-storey residential building in Poplar, Tower Hamlets, East London. Built in a Brutalist style, it forms part of the Brownfield Estate, an area of social housing between Chrisp Street Market and the A12 northern approach ...

and Carradale House, which were designed by Goldfinger himself and are now Grade II listed. There are four four-bedroom maisonettes on the ground floor, 18 one-bedroom, 45 two-bedroom and 12 three-bedroom flats; 79 flats in all. Its design and construction have proved to be of better quality than many other post-war high-rise blocks.
Common Ground for Mutual Home Ownership
'',

New Economics Foundation The New Economics Foundation (NEF) is a British think-tank that promotes "social, economic and environmental justice". NEF was founded in 1986 by the leaders of The Other Economic Summit (TOES) with the aim of working for a "new model of wealth ...

2003, pp 21, 25 Since 1979 it has been run as a self-managed co-operative housing association and registered social landlord (RSL). Glenkerry Co-operative Housing Association (GCHA/GK) bought a 99-year lease from the Greater London Secondary Housing Association, partly funded by grants from the

Housing Corporation The Housing Corporation was the non-departmental public body that funded new affordable housing and regulated housing associations in England. It was established by the Housing Act 1964. On 1 December 2008, its functions were transferred to two n ...

and the Greater London Council, and raised about a third of the cost from sales to residents (members). The GLC also provided a loan for the remainder of the cost, which has now been repaid. The

freehold Freehold may refer to: In real estate *Freehold (law), the tenure of property in fee simple * Customary freehold, a form of feudal tenure of land in England * Parson's freehold, where a Church of England rector or vicar of holds title to benefice ...

is now owned by the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Members buy and sell the

leasehold A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property, a l ...

s of their homes at half the valuation, as assessed by the District Valuer. The building is managed by a committee of its members, and research on housing co-ops in 1983 concluded that it was exceptionally well-run. Birchall, Johnston. ''Building Communities: the Co-operative Way'', Routledge (London), 1988. Cited in ''Common Ground'' Because this form of co-operative ownership does not allow the residents to increase their share and become full

owner-occupier Owner-occupancy or home-ownership is a form of housing tenure in which a person, called the owner-occupier, owner-occupant, or home owner, owns the home in which they live. The home can be a house, such as a single-family house, an apartment, c ...

s, the Conservative government of the day did not give support to the model. Nevertheless, it is now widely regarded as a model for home ownership co-operatives,
Community Land Trusts & Mutual Housing Models
'', Greater London Authority 2004, pp14, 23, 24. as it provides equity stakes that allow members to benefit from gains in the housing market, while locking in the subsidy so that the homes remain affordable to new members.

References

External links

Glenkerry House Official WebsiteGlenkerry House
at Emporis.com

References

External links

See also