Research shortcomings in housing

The 2008 Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Research Symposium was devoted to housing. Entitled 'Space at Home' and aiming to present the latest research for practising architects, it was extremely well attended, particularly by practitioners, and the programme interspersed contributions from housing researchers in industry and academia with 'show and tell' presentations by distinguished architects from the UK and overseas. Alongside housing schemes by Walter Menteth, PCKO Architects, and Proctor Matthews, a highlight was the innovative Iquique project by Keynote Speaker Alejandro Aravena from Chile. For the most part, the research presentations consisted of market research looking at the present-day private sector in the UK, conforming to a long-established model in which the architectural profession gazes, with varying degrees of horror and fascination, at the 'untutored' practices of market-led housing. The emphasis on market-based research gave the event a decidedly Anglo-Saxon perspective and meant that, while much of interest was on offer, there were also major areas that escaped attention almost entirely, technical as much as historical.