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Last edited 11 Apr 2025

Housing in the UK

• Cover (left): An interpretation of Sir Karl Popper's clouds and clocks (p.491) by Philip Castle and (right) A portrait by Adrian George.

[edit] FOREWORD

Housing in the UK has been selected for further investigation after reading 'Expediency' by Cedric Price.

• 'EXPEDIENCY' by Cedric Price. Source: AD 9/69, p.493

[edit] INTRODUCTION

In his introductory essay to the special issue of AD published in September 1969, Roy Landau wrote:—

"... starting with the premise that current theories and attitudes will remain only so long as they are relevant or satisfactory, or until such time as they can be improved upon, we examine some ways and means of thinking about architecture and planning as seen within the context of an ever changing present.
Architecture and planning are question-asking activities which are popularly classified as 'problem-solving'".
('Thinking about architecture and planning - A question of ways and means', AD 9/69, p.479) [1]

The issue contained an outline taken from Cedric Price's then current housing study (late sixties), namely:—

'EXPEDIENCY' [2]

Thus Cedric Price placed his outline in AD 9/69.

The purpose of this article is:—

to place it in a new context in order to suggest a different interpretation.

• Facsimile highlighting some initial questions. Source: Expediency

"Housing thus saturated with the implications of such questions is seen in a 'problem solving' context to be infinitely regressive. [*]
Why should anyone assume that such a display of intellectually edible concepts will ever reduce, when challenged with the hunger for somewhere to LIVE?"
(ib.)

[edit] GENERATING AN INFINITE REGRESS

In 1969, in 'Expediency', Cedric Price wrote:—

Housing in the UK has been selected for investigation since I consider it a critical element of the man-made environment which through prolonged misrepresentation and mis-applied design theory has become probably the least sensitive element of artificial human-conditioning.

The following documents are presented here for further consideration:—

Notes

The publication of the Tudor Walters Report in 1918 was preceded by a serial of housing legislation, namely:—

According to Lucia Alonso, the 1851 Act is:—

"Considered by some as the first housing legislation."
(Housing Standardisation, 2023, 'DATASET: Housing Standards, Manuals and Acts in England')

[edit] • Municipal Housing in Liverpool in 1869

• St Martin’s Cottages municipal housing, Silvester Street, Liverpool | RIBA pix

Notes

"The first council to build housing as an integrated policy was Liverpool Corporation,[13] starting with St Martin's Cottage Cottages in Ashfield Street, Vauxhall, completed in 1869."
(Wikipedia, 2025, 'Council-built housing' in 'Public housing in the United Kingdom'

Further:—

The ‘cottages’ were tenements – 146 flats and maisonettes in two four-storey blocks, brick-built with open staircases and separate WCs placed on the half-landings. The result was so bleak that even the trade magazine The Builder concluded that those who built for the poor should ‘mix a little philanthropy with their percentage calculations’.
(Municipal Dreams, 2013)

Learn More

[edit] • TUDOR WALTERS REPORT

According to Roderick J. Lawrence:—

"The first of three milestones in the explicit spatial control of houses for “the working classes” was the Report of the Tudor Walters Committee of 1918. This report became the theme of the Manual on the Preparation of State Aided Housing Schemes which was published the following year. The recommendations of the Tudor Walters Committee were presented as the first official document to have an explicit influence on the type of house; its room shape and sizes, and the allocation of particular spaces for specific domestic activities. Hence, the intentions of these recommendations express the first official, conscious attempt to design houses for “the working classes” and to suggest how these houses should be used."
(Lawrence, 1985, 'Design By Legislation: The Ideological Nature of House Planning in the United Kingdom, 1918-1961', pp.125-126)

On 26 July 1917, the Tudor Walters Committee was appointed by William Hayes Fisher, President of the Local Government Board.

The original terms of reference were:—

"to consider questions of building construction in connection with the provision of dwellings for the working classes in England and Wales, and report upon methods of securing economy and despatch in the provision of such dwellings."
(Tudor Walters Report, p.3)

They were amended on 20 April 1918:—

"... by the insertion of the words "and Scotland" after the word "Wales.""
(ib.)

Notes

Chairman:— William Hayes Fisher

Members:—

Sir John Tudor Walters, M.P.,
Sir Charles Allom,
* Mr. Frank Baines, M.V.O., [*]
Mr. James Boyton, M.P.,
Mr. William Fairley, M. INST. C.E..
Mr. G. Marlow Reed,
Mr. J. Walker Smith, M. INST. C.E.,
Mr. James Squires,
Mr. Raymond Unwin, F.R.I.B.A.,
Sir Aston Webb, K.C.V.O., C.B.,

Resigned September, 1918.

• Terms of reference and composition of the Tudor Walters Committee

The diagrams and plans illustrated in the report includes the following house plans:—

• Type I (Illustration No. 18, p.28)

• Type IA (Illustration No. 38, p.43)

• Type II (Illustration No. 19, p.28)

• Type IIA (Illustration No. 39, p.44)

• Type III (Illustration No. 20, p.28)

• Type III (Illustration No. 36, p.42)

• Type III (Illustration No. 37, p.43)

• Type IIIA (Illustration No. 40, p.44)

• A selection of the key drawings illustrating the three generic house forms and their variants

The text indicates the long-term intentions of the committee. See, for example:—

Paragraph 27.3

"The erection under the auspices of the Boards of so large a number of houses as is now contemplated must profoundly influence the general standard of housing in the country which it is the desire of the Boards to see raised."

Paragraph 27.6

"In the face of an improving standard it is only wise economy to build dwellings which, so far as may be judged, will continue to be above the accepted minimum, at least for the whole period of the loan with the aid of which they are provided, say 60 years;..."

Learn More

[edit] • Housing, Town Planning, &c. Act 1919 (Addison Act)

According to Lucia Alonso:—

"The Act was passed to allow the building of new houses after World War I. Provided subsidies to local authorities to help finance the construction of 500,000 houses within three years (only 213,800 homes were built). This legislation subsidised the cost of council housing from three sources: rents, local authority rates, and a grant from the state (previously there had been no subsidies)."

(Lucia Alonso, ib.)

Learn More

• Proposed subsidy house. Source: Cheshirero	• Runcorn Rural District Council - Type A House. Source: Cheshirero	• Runcorn Rural District Council - Type A House. Source: Cheshirero	• City of Chester, Lache Housing Estate - Proposed Non-parlour Houses. Source: Cheshirero
• City of Chester, Lache Housing Estate - Proposed Parlour Houses. Source: Cheshirero	• Runcorn Rural District Council - Proposed Layout of Land, Helsby. Source: Cheshirero	• Runcorn Rural District Council - Proposed Housing Scheme at Helsby for Thirty Four Houses. Source: Cheshirero	• Untitled image. Source: Cheshirero

• Typical council development - courtesy of Cheshire County Council.

According to Wikipedia:—

"The Housing, Town Planning, &c. Act 1919 (9 & 10 Geo. 5. c. 35) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was also known as the Addison Act after Minister of Health, Christopher Addison, who was Minister for Housing. The Act was passed to allow the building of new houses after the First World War, and marked the start of a long 20th-century tradition of state-owned housing in planned council estates. A separate Act was passed for Scotland."

Learn More

[edit] • Manual on the Preparation of State-Aided Housing Schemes

According to Lawrence:—

The Manual adopted the recommendations of the Tudor Walters Committee which had evolved three generic house forms to meet the rising standards of “the working classes”.
(ib., p.127)

• Illustrations Nos 2-4, pp.12-13

• Illustrations Nos 5-8, pp.14-15

• Illustrations Nos 9A-10, pp.16-17

• Illustrations Nos 11-12C, pp.18-19

Learn More

[edit] • DUDLEY REPORT

According to Lawrence:—

In 1944, the Dudley Committee was appointed by the Ministry of Health to “make recommendations about the design, planning, layout standards of construction and equipment of dwellings for people throughout the country”. The Committee Report entitled Design of Dwellings was the second important milestone in the evolution of the official control of house planning and design. The report had an important influence on the built form and use of dwellings which were built from that time. The terms of reference which were established for the committee limited its investigation to houses built by local authorities. However, for the first time reference to .‘the working classes” was deleted. This was an important change. The houses were no longer built for a specific category of people, and the demarcation of interests was reduced.
(ib., p.132)

TERMS OF REFERENCE

1. We were appointed at the meeting of the Central Housing Advisory Committee on the 20th March, 1942, with the following terms of reference :

“To make recommendations as to the design, planning, layout, standards of construction and equipment of dwellings for the people throughout the country.”

2. Our terms of reference would justify an examination of the whole field of housing. We have decided, however, to confine our consideration to the types of permanent dwelling commonly built by local authorities, bearing in mind that their present powers under Part V of the Housing Act, 1936, are restricted to the provision of dwellings for the working classes. Nevertheless, the standards we recommend are equally applicable to all types of housing, and we feel that steps should be taken to ensure that development by private enterprise does not fall below them. We have not considered standards of temporary construction as we regard it as outside the scope of our inquiry and the subject has been considered by another Sub-Committee.

3. In considering one section of our terms of reference—namely layout—we have entered on a wider field. Here we suggest means for the erection of complete communities rather than the development of purely residential estates for a single social class. The creation of such communities depends for its success upon the collaboration of all types of enterprise, both public and private, working towards a common goal.

(p.8)

Notes

Chairman:— The Right Hon. the Earl of Dudley, M.C., T.D.

Members

* Miss J. F. Adburgham, L.R.I.B.A., A.M.T.P.
Sir Harold Bellman, M.B.E., J.P.
Sir George Burt, M.Inst.C.E.
* Mrs. C. Cook
Mr. R. Coprock, C.B.E.
Mr. L. de Soissons, O.B.E., A.R.A., F.R.I.B.A., M.T.P.I.
Mrs. M. M. Dollar, iP.
+ Mrs, E..Gooch, J.P., C.C.
* Miss M. E. Haworth
Mr. L. H. Keay, O.B.E., F.R.1.B.A.
{ Miss Megan Lloyd George, M.P.
Ald. Sir Miles Mitchell, J.P.
§ Mr. A. E. Monks, J.P.
Mr. J. W. Robertson Scott, J.P., C.C.
The Lady Sanderson, J.P.
Mr. John A. F. Watson, J.P., F.S.1.
Sir Seymour Williams, K.B.E., C.C.
Dr. J. Greenwood WiIson, M.D., F.R.C.P., D.P.H.

Secretary : Miss Judith G. Ledeboer, A.R.I.B.A.

Signifies added member to the Sub-Committee.

+ Mrs. Gooch was appointed on 15th January, 1943.

t Miss Megan Lloyd George was appointed on 13th July, 1942.

§ Mr. Monks was appointed on 16th October, 1942.

• Terms of reference and composition of the Dudley Committee

• Arrangement of Ground Flooor in Three-Bedroomed House - Alternative 1

• Arrangement of Ground Flooor in Three-Bedroomed House - Alternative 2

• Arrangement of Ground Flooor in Three-Bedroomed House - Alternative 3

• Storage Fittings

Learn More

[edit] • Housing Manual

According to Lucia Alonso:—

"The Dudley Report's recommendations were used to write the Housing Manual. Housing based on new employment centres. Redefined density from the number of dwellings per acre to the 'number of persons for whom accommodation is to be provided' (assumed 2b house for 4 people)."

(Lucia Alonso, ib.)

Learn More

[edit] • TEMPORARY ACCOMMODATION

In the Preface to 'PREFABS: A History of the UK Temporary Housing Programme', Brenda Vale wrote:—

"After the Second World War a new type of state-subsidized house appeared in Britain. The two-bedroom temporary bungalow was produced ostensibly to provide much needed housing in the immediate post-war period and some 156,623 houses were supplied between 1945-1949 as part of the scheme. The bungalows differed from pre-war state-subsidized housing in a number of ways including their method of construction.For the first time in Britain one of the ideals of the Modern Movement was realized: a house was manufactured on a production line in a factory.
The hypothesis that underlies this particular investigation into the history of the prefab is that, as a housing form, it was in essence a public success."
(1995, p.viii)

• 1944 Arcon

• Plan — Source: Ministry of Health/Ministry of Works via Brenda Vale, p.3

• 1945 Howard

• Ground floor plan - Source: Scrapbook

• 1945 Phoenix

• Floor plan

• 1946 BISF

• Prototype floor plans

BISF House Architectural Building Plans

Learn More

[edit] • PARKER MORRIS

According to Lawrence:—

The Committee’s Report, Homes for Today and Tomorrow' is the third and final milestone in this serial of English Housing legislation. The Parker Morris Committee reviewed previous legislation and noted the importance of the Housing Manuals which had been published since 1944. They suggested that the introduction of the Housing Manuals in 1952 and 1953 had stifled alternative plan arrangements, induced standardisation, and that this had been evident in “the internal designs of local authority houses of the late ‘fifties”‘.
(ib., p.138)

Preface

Terms of Reference

We were appointed by the Central Housing Advisory Committee “to consider the standards of design and equipment applicable to family dwellings . . . whether provided by public or private enterprise, and to make recommendations”.
We have understood our ters to mea tat our primary task was to consider standards of internal design.
('Homes for today & tomorrow', 1961, p.iv)

Notes

Chairman:— Sir Parker Morris, LL.B

Members:—

Miss Helen Alford, B.A., F.R.I.C.S.
Mr. C. Douglas Galverley, F.I.O.B.
Mr. Peter Chamberlin, F.R.I.B.A.
Ald. Sir Harold Clowes, O.B.E., J.P. *
Mr. E.V. Collins, A.R.I.B.A. *
Mrs. Evelyn Denington
Mr. G. L. A. Downing, O.B.E., M.I.C.E., A.M.I.Mech.E., M.I.Mun.E. *
Miss Judith Ledeboer, F.R.I.B.A., M.A.(Cantab.), F.I.L.A. *
Ald. A. R. Nobes, O.B.E., J.P.
Mrs. Ivy Powell *
Miss Margaret Reade, O.B.E., J.P.
Viscount Ridley, C.B.E.T.D., J.P. •
Professor Andrew B. Semple, V.R.D., M.D., D.P.H.
Mrs. Muriel Smith
Mrs. Anne Unmack *
Mr. Norman E. Wates, F.I.O.B.
Mr. J. L. Womersley, F.R.I.B.A., M.T.P.I.
Mr. A. A. Bellamy, A.R.I.B.A., A.M.T.P.I. (Assessor)

Secretary: S. W. Gilbert

Technical Secretary: P. G. Negus, A.R.I.B.A.

Co-opted members.

• Viscount Ridley resigned from the Sub-Committee on 25th February, 1960.

• Terms of reference and composition of the Parker Morris Committee

[edit] • Space in the Home: Design Bulletin 6

• Food Preparation (p.10)	• Eating (p.11)	• Leisure (p.12)	• Leisure (p.13)
• Sleeping (p.14)	• Personal Care (p.15)	• Circulating (p.16)	• Entering and Leaving (p.17)
• Furniture and Equipment (p.18)	• Furniture and Equipment (p.19)	• Furniture and Equipment (p.20)	• Furniture and Equipment (p.21)

• Selected pages from Space in the Home. Source: HMSO

[edit] INFINITE REGRESS ARGUMENT

According to Wikipedians:—

"An infinite regress is an infinite series of entities governed by a recursive principle that determines how each entity in the series depends on or is produced by its predecessor."
(Wikipedia, 2025, 'Infinite regress')

Further:—

"An infinite regress is a series of appropriately related elements with a first member but no last member, where each element leads to or generates the next in some sense. An infinite regress argument is an argument that makes appeal to an infinite regress."
(Ross Cameron, 2022, 'Infinite Regress Arguments')

The evidence presented in the chronology listed in the first part of this article supports the proposition:

... that the series of recommendations and legislation starting with the Tudor Walters Report in 1918 was governed by a recursive principle which determined how each instance in the series depended on or was produced by its predecessor.

The second part of this article is based on a hypothesis, namely:—.

... that there is no last member in the series of recommendations and legislation which started with the Tudor Walters Report in 1918.

[edit] FURTHER ONGOING RESEARCH

In 1969, in Expediency, Cedric Price also wrote:—

"The mass of pre-assumed roles required, particularly of publicly financed housing, combined with the rapidly changing socio/political causatory climate reinforces it unsuitability as a subject for present methods of forecasting and problem solving."
(ib.)

and questioned the assumption:—

"...that, in relation to housing, there is a soluble problem rather than an indeterminate situation."
(ib.)

A three-year study of recently built affordable and subsidised housing in England, Chile, China, the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland,

A study of the recommendations and legislation produced since 'Space in the Homes' was published in 1968 indicates:—

... that there is no last member in the series of recommendations and legislation which started with the Tudor Walters Report in 1918.

For example, Housing Standardisation

• Screenshot: AEX webpage advertising Housing Standardisation

Notes

According to Housing Standardisation:—

"The layout and construction of subsidised houses in England continue to be traditional and highly standardised. Housebuilders often use their development standards and standardised layouts, especially for houses, as homes on large development sites can be easily replicated. In contrast, apartment blocks in urban areas face more constraints. While dwelling sizes may vary by tenure, housing market, and local standards – and exteriors may differ – the basic layouts typically remain the same."
[*]

• Affordable and private house types by the same builder

[edit] CONCLUSION

• Cover (left): AD 10/72 "Complexity" with Royston Landau peering through and Cover (right) AD 5/76 "Birkin Hayward lifts the lid off the systems approach"

[edit] APPENDIX - DATASET 1666-1968

Year

Type

Title

Published by

Notes

1666	• Rebuilding of London Act 1666. Source: Wikipedia	Rebuilding of London Act 1666	Parliament of England	"The Act proposed that all new buildings had to be constructed of brick or stone for fire safety. It also imposed a maximum number of storeys per house for a fixed number of abodes to eliminate overcrowding." (Lucia Alonso, 2023) Learn More
1774	• Fires Prevention (Metropolis) Act 1774. Source: Wikipedia	Fires Prevention (Metropolis) Act 1774	Parliament of Great Britain	"Categorised urban houses into different rates defined by the value of the property and its total floor area. It standardised the quality and construction of buildings and made the exterior of a building as fire-proof as possible, by restricting any superfluous exterior timber ornamentation except for door frames and shop fronts. Appointment of District Surveyors to supervise the Building Laws." (Lucia Alonso, 2023) Learn More
1844	• The Metropolitan Buildings Act 1844. Source: Internet Archive	The Metropolitan Buildings Act 1844
1851	• Common Lodging Houses Act 1851. Source: Wikipedia	Common Lodging Houses Act 1851	UK Parliament	"Considered by some as the first housing legislation. It gave boroughs and vestries the power to raise funds via local rates or Public Works Loan Commissioners to build lodging houses for unmarried working people." (Lucia Alonso, 2023) Learn More
1885	• Housing of the Working Classes Act 1885. Source: Wikipedia	Housing of the Working Classes Act 1885	UK Parliament	"Consolidated and amended Shaftesbury, Torrens, and Cross Acts. Lodging houses were redefined to include separate dwellings for labouring classes. The interests for Public Works Loan Board lowered." (Lucia Alonso, 2023) Learn More
1890	• Act. Source: Internet Archive	The Housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890	UK Parliament	"It enabled local authorities to build on cleared land. The Act did not allow authorities to build their own housing on land remaining vacant prior to 1890, but it allowed them the swap land so that a cleared site could be sold commercially if there was another site close by that could be used." (Lucia Alonso, 2023) Learn More
1890	• Act. Source: Wellcome Collection	The Housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890	UK Parliament	"The housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890, annotated, with appendices containing the Incorporated Statutory Provisions, the Working Classes Dwellings Act, 1890, the Standing Orders of Parliament related to Provisional Orders, and the Circulars, Memoranda and ...". (Charles Allen, 1890) Learn More
1894	• London Building Act, 1894. Source: Internet Archive	London Building Act, 1894	London County Council (LCC) / Banister Fletcher
1909	• Act. Source: Internet Archive	The Housing & Town Planning, etc. Act 1909 Learn More	UK Parliament	"Considered UK's first town planning Act. It prohibited the ‘back-to-back’ housing. It was less on town planning, and more about the sanitary and aesthetic improvement of housing and focused on the prevention of future slums in new peripheral suburban developments." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1918	• Report. Source: HathiTrust	Report of the committee appointed ... to consider questions of building construction in connection with the provision of dwellings for the working classes in England and Wales, and Scotland, and report upon methods of securing economy and despatch in the provision of such dwellings ... (Tudor Walters Report)	Tudor Walters Committee	"The report published five model plans. These designs were specifically to set minimum expected building standards and facilities (such as bath in every house) and provide house designs that would have good living quality and efficient building materials. Authorities could design their own houses... (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1919	• Act. Source: Gov.UK	Housing, Town Planning, &c. Act 1919 (Addison Act)	UK Parliament	"The Act was passed to allow the building of new houses after World War I. Provided subsidies to local authorities to help finance the construction of 500,000 houses within three years [...] . This legislation subsidised the cost of council housing from three sources: rents, local authority rates, and a grant from the state (previously there had not been no subsidies)." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1919	• Manual. Source: Internet Archive	Manual on the Preparation of State-Aided Housing Schemes	Local Government Board	"The manual was intended as a guide to local authorities on the preparation, design and construction of housing schemes with the recommendations from the Tudor Walters Report." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1944	• Manual. Source: HathiTrust	Housing Manual	Ministry of Health / Ministry of Works	"The Dudley Report's recommendations were used to write the Housing Manual. Housing based on new employment centres. Redefined density from the number of dwellings per acre to the 'number of persons for whom accommodation is to be provided' (assumed 2b house for 4 people)." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1944	• Report. Source: Internet Archive	Design of Dwellings (Dudley Report)	Central Housing Advisory Committee	"The Dudley Report was produced by a committee set up by the Ministry of Health’s Central Housing Committee to report upon the design of pre-war council house dwellings. The Report reviewed guidance on housing standards post Tudor Walter and concluded that the design of council houses was lacking in variety and offered insufficient living space." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1944	• Act. Source: Hansard	Housing (Temporary Accommodation) Act 1944	UK Parliament / Ministry of Reconstruction (Wikipedia)	"The Government aimed to provide enough homes for each family who required an individual dwelling, which it perceived had been the situation in 1939 prior to the outbreak of war. It also intended for the completion of the pre-war slum clearance project." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1961	• Report. Source: Internet Archive	Parker Morris Report, Homes for Today and Tomorrow	Parker Morris Committee / Central Housing Advisory Committee	"The report made recommendations for the total area of the dwelling as minimum standards. It was not just about square meters but about usability. It proposed better housing for both public and private sector and for-sale and for-let. Dwellings would include storage and heating (household goods were a commonplace)." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More
1968	• Design Bulletin	Space in the Home: Metric edition Design Bulletin 6	Ministry of Housing and Local Government	"The bulletin was designed to follow-up the publication of 'Homes for Today and Tomorrow'. It illustrated the main activities in a home and suggested furniture and space requirements." (Lucia Alonso, ib.) Learn More

• Edited extract from 'DATASET: Housing Standards, Manuals and Acts in England' compiled by Lucia Alonso. Source: Housing Standardisation

[edit] References - Roderick Lawrence

Roderick Lawrence (1985) 'Design by legislation: The ideological nature of house planning in the United Kingdom, 1918–1961' at ResearchGate. Also in Habitat International, Volume 9, Issue 2, 1985, Pages 123-140 https://doi.org/10.1016/0197-3975(85)90014-1

Bowley. M. (1945) ‘Housing and the State 1919-1944‘, University Press, Cambridge.
E. Gauldie (1974) ‘Cruel Habitations: a History of Working Class Housing, 1700–1918‘, New York : Barnes & Noble.
E. Chadwick (1965) ‘Report on the Sanitary Condition of the Labouring Population‘, Edited, with an introduction by M.W. Finn; pp. 219-254. University Press. Edinburgh.
M. Swenarton (1981) ‘Homes Fit for Heroes — The Politics and Architecture of Early State Housing in Britain‘, Heinemann, London.
Local Government Board (1918) ‘Report of the Committee … to Consider Questions of Building Construction in Connection with the Provision of Dwellings for the Working Classes in England and Wales and Scotland‘, cd. 9191. The Tudor Walters Report. H.M.S.O., London.
E. Howard (1902) ‘Garden Cities of Tomorrow‘, see revised edition with introduction by F. Osborn (1944). Architectural Press, London.
Local Government Board (1919) ‘Manual on the Preparation of State Aided Housing Schemes‘, H.M.S.O., London.
Ministry of Reconstruction (1919) ‘Report on The Women’s Housing Subcommittee Appointed by The Minister of Reconstruction To Consider The Plans Of Houses From The Point Of View Of Convenience For The Housewife’, cd. 9166. H.M.S.O., London.
B. Parker (1919) ‘The Joseph Rowntree Village Trust’, in Housing pp. 254-255. 29th March 1920, H.M.S.O., London.
E. Layton (1961) ‘Building by Local Authorities‘, George Allen and Unwin, London.

There are more references available in the full text version of this article.

Ministry of Health (1944) ‘Design of Dwellings‘, the report of the Dudley Committee. p. 8. H.M.S.O., London.
Ministry of Housing and Local Government (1944) ‘Housing Manual‘, H.M.S.O., London.
Ministry of Housing and Local Government (1952) ‘Housing Manual 1952’, H.M.S.O., London.
Department of the Environment (1961) ‘Homes for Today and Tomorrow‘, the report of the Parker Morris Committee. H.M.S.O., London.
Ministry of Housing and Local Government (1967) ‘Housing Standards Costs and Subsidies’, M.O. H. L.G. Circular X/37. H.M.S.O., London.

Source:— https://extremelyprovocative.wordpress.com/2025/03/17/design-by-legislation-the-ideological-nature-of-house-planning-in-the-united-kingdom-1918-1961-by-roderick-lawrence/

[edit] References - still for a movie

[edit] Further reading

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/infinite-regress/
Cheshireo (2019) 'Homes fit for Heroes', blogspot website
Jacoby, S. & Özer, S. (Eds.). (2024). Housing Norms and Standards: The Design of Everyday Life [special issue], Urban Planning, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.17645/up.i316
https://evolutionaryurbanism.com/2018/11/06/ad-is-thinking-about-architecture-and-planning-guest-editor-royston-landau-architectural-digest-9-september-1969/
George Bentley and Samuel Pointin (1911) 'Housing, town planning, etc., act, 1909; a practical guide in the preparation of town planning schemes. With appendices containing the text of the act, the procedure regulations, extracts from the Hampstead Garden suburb act, 1906, extract from the Liverpool corporation (streets and buildings) act, 1908, etc., etc., also specimen forms of notices and advertisements and a model set of coloured plans prepared in accordance with the requirements of the regulations', London : G. Philip & Son, Ltd.; [etc., etc.]
Tudor Walters Committee (1918) 'Report of the committee appointed by the President of the Local Government Board and the Secretary of Scotland to consider questions of building construction in connection with the provision of dwellings for the working classes in England and Wales, and Scotland, and report upon methods of securing economy and despatch in the provision of such dwellings', HMSO, at HathiTrust
Wikipedians (2024) 'Tudor Walters Report', Wikipedia
Wikipedians (2024) 'Housing, Town Planning, &c. Act 1919', aka the Addison Act, Wikipedia
Ministry of Health (1944) 'Design of dwellings : Report of the Design of dwellings subcommittee of the Central housing advisory committee appointed by the minister of health and Report of a study group of the Ministry of town and country planning on site planning and layout in relation to housing', aka Dudley Report, HMSO
Ministry of Health and Ministry of Works (1944) 'Housing Manual 1944', HMSO
Ministry of Reconstruction (1944) 'Housing (Temporary Accommodation) Act', HMSO
Ministry of Housing and Local Government (1961) 'Homes for today & tomorrow', HMSO aka Parker Morris
Cedric Price (1969) 'Expediency', Architectural Design, September
Julia Park (2017) 'One Hundred Years of Housing Space Standards: What Now?', Levitt Bernstein
Lucia Alonso (2023) 'DATASET: Housing Standards, Manuals and Acts in England', Housing Standardisation

[edit] Related articles in Designing Buildings

Housing in the UK: Datasets

Housing Research by Cedric Price

[edit] Definitions etc

An infinite regress is an infinite series of entities governed by a recursive principle that determines how each entity in the series depends on or is produced by its predecessor. Wikipedia

Cameron, Ross, "Infinite Regress Arguments", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2022 Edition), Edward N. Zalta & Uri Nodelman (eds.), URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2022/entries/infinite-regress/>.

This raises the question "Why?"