Securing ‘the right to stay put’ for those being displaced by state-led gentrification
Research has helped secure the rights of those threatened with displacement from their homes in state-led programmes of urban redevelopment and gentrification.
Issue
Government efforts to promote urban development can sometimes displace pre-existing populations, whether through direct expropriation, or indirectly through market forces and knock-on effects on community composition and place identity.
Approach
Research evidenced the impacts of government efforts to redevelop run-down public housing estates and gentrify inner city neighbourhoods in London and across Europe more widely.
Professor Lees worked with community groups to document resident displacement from council estates undergoing redevelopment in London, and research on austerity-driven gentrification in southern European cities.
Impact
The action research co-produced a ‘Staying Put’ handbook, providing advice to council estate residents on their rights and a toolkit of organising strategies to resist demolition and redevelopment. Local versions of Staying Put were also created for Southern Europe in Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Greek.
Research provided evidence to the Aylesbury Public Inquiry on “the trauma and inconvenience caused to displaced homeowners affected by regeneration” which led to a new rehousing policy by Southwark Council. Analysis also influenced the Haringey Council not to continue with planned redevelopment.
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How to cite
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) (2023) Securing the 'right to stay put' for those being displaced by state-led gentrification. Available at https://rgs.org/state-ledgentrification Last accessed on: <date>