There has been recent interest and uptake in alternative housing to provide transitional accommodation to those looking to move into more long term housing, one of which is Modular housing, yet there remains little known about such housing solutions.

‍

This research provides an overview of the current modular and container housing provision in the UK.

‍

Findings

• One advantage to modular housing is the number of people which it can house on one site but consideration should be given to this as there is limited research. There is a worry that too many units may impact upon space and privacy. Further research is needed within this area to understand this in greater detail
• A need for clearer recording of what support services are provided alongside this type of accommodation and who it is provided for, to help understand how it is working in practice
• Speed of build reduces the need for additional changes to the site which in turn can lower community disruption 
• Initial understanding of this type of housing is that it is cheaper in comparison to other forms of temporary housing but little evidence to support this, more exploration is needed in this area. Especially regarding floating support and the additional costs this may have

Watch the recording from our event 'Is modular housing an effective solution to reduce homelessness?' to find out more about our findings.

‍

‍

How we went about it

‍This project aims to create a starting point for consideration of how modular housing could work in practice and what the potential benefits and limitations of this type of accommodation are.

‍

What’s next/ways to get involved

Future phases of this project will involve gathering people's experiences and outcomes to understand how effective they are at preventing homelessness.

‍

Team

Dr Katy Karampour, The Cambridge Centre for Planning and Housing Research, University of Cambridge
Dr Gemma Burgess, The Cambridge Centre for Planning and Housing Research, University of Cambridge