Collingham-based Gusto Construction founder and chairman Steff Wright calling for change to planning law to allow affordable living in tiny home communities

A businessman is pushing for changes to planning policy — believing community-focused tiny homes could be the key to creating more affordable housing.

Steff Wright, founder and chairman of Collingham-based B-Corp Gusto Construction, has called for the Government to change planning laws around tiny homes — and claimed its ambitious pledge to build 1.5m new homes before the next election in 2029 will be difficult to achieve with the current process of housebuilding.

Additionally, he found the challenge many people face getting onto the housing ladder a sign that a bold new approach to housing is urgently needed.

Tiny homes are a type of modular housing which are created to feel like a full-sized house in a more compact form, typically designed to be movable but not for regular towing like caravans.

“Current planning rules mean tiny homes are considered as park homes and quite often are restricted for from permanent use,” Steff said.

“Standard park homes are designed for leisure, but tiny homes are built for permanent occupation, and because they’re small they also require community resources.

“They’re taking hold massively in America and other parts of the world, they’re environmentally sustainable and affordable — affordability is the main constraint at the moment, even if the Government do manage to built 1.5m homes.

“Tiny homes would offer housing independence and security.”

What could be the way forward, Steff said, is communities of these tiny homes with shared community-owned facilities and spaces such as laundrettes, gyms, cafes, and even ‘luxuries’ such as saunas.

Many tiny homes designs are now innovating with energy-efficient features, such as inbuilt water recycling and natural building materials, and their size and factory construction result in a carbon footprint of approximately 10% of a standard brick-built house.

While it hasn’t yet created a tiny home community, Gusto Construction has already implemented a number of these principles into it’s developments in Collingham and Lincoln.

It’s Woodlands Edge development near Lincoln boasts allotments, tennis courts, and residents have access to shared equipment such as a pressure washer, gardening tools, and a compressor, and at the Collingham development there is a Men in Sheds shed, co-working spaces, and a gym.

“People don’t necessarily need to own all that kit themselves,” Steff added.

“It’s a type of co-living which works in a rural setting, there’s lots of good examples of co-living in cities, but it’s one of the key things that’s missing from new developments.

“We’re loosing our old village-type communities, with village halls, youth clubs, churches, now we just get housing developments with no other facilities.”

Tiny homes, Steff believes, can also help unlock and use parcels of land which may not be suitable for traditional development as they need less infrastructure — and also offer an opportunity to create communities which are not car-centric but instead have a car park area and the rest of the space designed for pedestrians.

“I do think it is a big opportunity for our Government to change planning laws,” Steff added.

What do you think? Is this the solution to our housing crisis? Let us know your views in the comments below…