London needs to build 500,000 homes over the next ten years, and the same again in the following decade.  To date, London’s slowly expanding housing market has been lumpy. Available sites are being redeveloped at high densities, while the majority of the city has preserved it’s low-to-medium urban density.

It is assumed – and anecdotal evidence suggests – that local people and their elected representatives will oppose new developments in their neighbourhoods. Opposition is often founded on the grounds of damage to local character, pressure on local services, disruption or impact on property prices, or for ‘NIMBY-ism’.

Through interviews and analysis this project seeks to uncover specific concerns around urban change in London and suggest how might they be addressed.  The research is focused on  two key questions:

• How concerns vary between Londoners who live in different neighbourhoods, housing tenures and in different demographic groups.
• How does the housing crisis affect Londoners’ NIMBY to YIMBY position?