BYKER HOUSING

SCHEME
GROUP 4
BYKER ESTATE
•Located in the Byker district of Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
•The estate covers 200 acres (80 hectares).
•It houses the famous Byker Wall designed by Ralph Erskine which was
constructed in the 1970s.
•The Wall, along with the low rise dwellings built to its south, replaced Victorian
slum terraced housing.
•There were nearly 1200 houses on the site at Byker. They had been condemned
as unfit for human habitation in 1953, and demolition began in 1966.
On left is redeveloped houses while on right shows undeveloped houses
AIM
• Preserve social character of Byker:
o Living close to industries where they worked
o Intermarriage among school mates
CONCEPT
• Create a wall per block which incorporates housing:
o Would act as sound barrier against the proposed motorway and create separation with rest
of region(Byker wall)
o Would restrict vehicular access and favour walking so as to promote socialism within the
people.
Outside parking
CONSTRUCTION
• The architect set up office in the area but still there was less involvement from residents
• They tried to reduce displacement of residents during construction,new houses were
constructed before old were demolished.
• They tried to maintain good social aspect in the design
IMPACT OF SOCIAL AND CULTURAL CHANGES TO
ENVIRONMENT
• Courtyards facing south and planter boxes,seats and tables created social spaces.
• Landscaped areas included
• Cars parked in one periphery
• Old building were retained include churches and pubs
• New social facilities introduced eg hobby rooms for clubs and individuals
• Low rise structures with different typology
• Use of light materials:
 Bright timber cladding (known as romantic functionality )
 Metal roofs
POSITIVES OF BYKER HOUSING SCHEME
• Created a successful community of young residents and professionals if artists included
• Strong sense of bond in the community
• Identity of place because it was clearly defined
• Introduction of landscaping made it unique because it was not found in other residential
areas.it created a link between people and environment.
• Interesting design because of different topologies.
• Forefront in social housing as it was more humane than brutalist residential areas before.
• Intergrated social and economic community within the area which was unique.
• People were involved in development of project though minimal.
• They had a good overall condition(maintained well)
NEGATIVES OF THE PROJECT
• Housed fewer previous tenants-Less than half of the resident retuned.they felt it as a council
estate not a home.
• The wall was seen as a way of stigmatisation.
• They demolished Bolam coyne an architectural icon bringing controversy
• Prevented a sustainable community by separating it from rest of the region.
• South Byker was problematic:
o There was high vandalism
o High number of asylum seekers
o High tenancy turnover
o lack of long standing residents.
• There were many alleyways between structures which served as security risk for
pedestrians
• Pedestrians saw landscaping as security risk as attackers would hide behind trees and
bushes
• Design did not capture changing needs of society(focused on the private domain of house
and garden and ignored the collective semi public spaces:this was clearly shown by
increased car ownership in contrast to pedestrian circulation that was planned in design.
• Peripheral car parks created, due to high number of cars,which had poor security
FORM
oIt was achieved in Byker by;
•Use of low rise structures with different typologies
•Presence of a school,churches and hobby areas within the estate.
•Living close to industries where they made a living.
SAFETY
oAchieved by;
•Few access points into estate restricting entry into few areas that can be monitored
•The Byker wall was intended to protect the people from harsh sound of the proposed
motorway.
•Having parking on the outskirt enabled walking within the estate convenient.
BELOGING
oSense of ownership was brought about by;
•Community involvement in the project though minimal
•Retained old social buildings including churches and pubs
•Courtyards where community members could mingle
RECOGNITION
oIdentity of place was achieved by;
•The Byker wall separated the estate from surrounding areas bringing identity to the
place,
•Houses had un natural colour scheme for facade such as blue for the roof ,red on
benches and green balcony made the estate stand out.
VISION
oPreserve the social character of Byker i.e;
•Old tenants continue to reside within the community they originally created
•Promote intermarriage within the community to grow relations
•Living close to industries where they made a living