Course description
This course aims to
Brighton and Hove is a city that displays itself in its publicity as a sparkling centre of style, grace and arts centred
entertainment. It boasts varied shopping centres, a royal palace and world famous architecture. It also has high rates of
housing deprivation, often very close to the classical architectural areas. The poor housing is not just that easily discerned in
council high rise flats or in "bed-sit land" and not just of this century. The glamour of the resort has always gone side by side
with poverty and several official accounts outline this situation, and archival sources show poor areas in the pre-resort
community.
During the early 19th century the resort was the fastest growing urban area in the UK and by the early 20th century was the
second most densely populated urban borough. Attempts to create 'Homes for Heroes' after WW1 collapsed in the financial
crises of the period, and the Downland and coast adjacent to the resort became swamped in low cost, and low quality,
housing often referred to as 'Shack and Track' developments. Local authority attempts to alleviate the problem gave the
boroughs large estates of council housing supplemented by a burgeoning private housing sector. Post WW2 state provision of
housing was better organised and large areas of the two boroughs were infilled with council housing in a variety of forms.
Expansion of the universities in the city has created areas exhibiting 'studentification' and have created another set of
problems in a city short of affordable family dwellings.
New developments have sought to be either exclusive or upmarket, as at Brighton Marina, or eco friendly and alternative as in
the Hog Platt, Bevendean, or experimental at the Earthship Stanmer. Current financial constraints and local opposition have
left large housing projects in limbo or rejection as at King Alfred, Preston Barracks or the Marina 'Roaring Forties' towers.
What materials will I need?
LIBRARY
Hardy D & Ward C (1984) Arcadia for All Mansell
Berry S (2005) Georgian Brighton Phillimore
Fines K (2002) History of Brighton & Hove Phillimore
Leslie K & Short B (1999) Historical atlas of Sussex Phillimore
Montford S et al (1988) Backyard Brighton QueenSpark
Students are advised not to buy books until after they attend the first session.
Contact details for this course
Please contact GAE to enrol on this course or for more information.
Contact name
Support Officer Oliver Fisher
Post
Brighton Junction,
Isetta Square,
Brighton,
BN1 4GQ
Telephone
01273 810210
