A new movement, The Housing Assembly, is working to bring together the unheard voices of the housing crisis, uniting them to support initiatives aimed at delivering real solutions.
The Housing Assembly is an initiative of the Housing Mission Delivery Board (HMDB), set up to deliver the Housing Affordability pillar of Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Economic Strategy.
“Housing needs a reboot,” said Wayne Hemingway, HMDB member and founder of HemingwayDesign which is collaborating on the project. “We can’t just keep doing the same things over and over. It’s clear we need to build more homes. But the way the planning system operates means it’s often those who already own homes who object to new developments. Through the Housing Assembly, the aim is to help change that – by giving a voice to those who don’t currently have one in the conversation.”
In June, the Housing Assembly launched its first campaign, ‘Greetings from the Housing Crisis…’, which amplifies the voices of local residents – including families and young people – failed by the current system. The campaign launched with pop-up events at Fringe Arts Bath festival and in Old Bond Street, Bath.
The campaign features a vintage postcard stand displaying a series of provocative, housing-themed postcards, which invite written responses from the public. The stand will go on to pop up at various events across the region, including Midsomer Norton Farmers Market on 5 July and Keynsham Music Festival on 6 July.
Participants are encouraged to share their own stories and reflections on housing in the area and to delve deeper by joining the discussion forum on the Housing Assembly’s website.
Talented graphic design students from Bath College also contributed to the display, designing postcards as part of their end-of-term project.
By transforming lived experience into influence, the initiative seeks to create a trusted platform where the public can speak up, be heard and demand change.
“The way the planning system works means it’s often those who already own homes who object to new developments”
