My book, There’s No Place: The American Housing Crisis and what it means for the UK, will be published in June. Here’s what some people are saying about it:
“Glyn Robbins knows what he’s talking about. If words are weapons, this will be just the ammunition we need to fight for an end to homelessness.” Ken Loach
“I don’t know of any text that takes on as many of the key housing challenges in a single volume. It’s also unusual because it’s grounded by clearly voiced views of local housing activists.” Professor Larry Vale, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
“This is a gripping and thoroughly accessible read: an essential tool for everyone concerned with the housing crisis – what needs to be done and what activists are doing to campaign for secure, affordable housing for all.” Professor Marjorie Mayo, Goldsmiths, University of London
“Glyn Robbins brings a sharp and sympathetic eye to contemporary US struggles to Save Our Homes in the face of privatisation, deregulation and cuts. Readers will find much to resonate and reflect on as global capital tightens its death grip on our communities.” Michael Kane, Executive Director, National Alliance of HUD Tenants
The book comes at a critical moment for the future of housing in the US and UK. The election of Donald Trump makes a property developer “the most powerful man in the world”. For Americans with low-incomes, the limited help to keep a home they can afford is at risk. In the UK, the pending general election finds housing at a crossroads between a revival of non-market housing or letting the market rip.
There’s No Place tells the story of resistance and struggle at local level through the voices of those fighting to save their homes. Each chapter covers a different aspect of the trans-Atlantic housing crisis based on detailed field research and interviews in Boston, New York, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, New Orleans, Atlanta and Washington DC.
If you’d like to pre-order a copy, please contact me via this blog, Twitter, Facebook or email redroofpublishing1@gmail. com
Price is £10 ($12), plus post and packaging. All proceeds after costs will go to US and UK housing campaigns.
(Please get in touch if you’d like to organise a meeting, lecture or event around the themes of the book.)
Housing Matters 
Hi Glyn Hope th
Hello Juliet, hope you’re well. I think I might have missed something there!
Not sure this posted before. I would love a copy of the book. Please let me know how to go about this.
Thanks for the interest Andrew, much appreciated. Probably the easiest way is if you pop a quick email to redroofpublishing1@gmail.com. Then you’ll be added to the list. But I’ll also update the blog when the book’s out – aiming for 16th June. Best, G
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Excellent book, thank you
Thanks Paul, appreciate that. Very happy to come to Bristol to talk to LP members about the book and its issues, if that’s of interest. Best wishes, G
I’ll see what I can do, just had dispossession screened locally, have you seen it? Resonates with the themes in your book, confirms the transfer of US ideology to Britain
Yes, seen it Paul. As you say, resonates. For many reasons, now is the time to ramp-up the housing campaign. We’re at a crossroads. Next big landmark I’m involved with is a national summit in central London (sorry) on 7th October. Be great to see you and other Bristolians there. I can send you more details if you email me – glynrobbins@aol.com
Hi, I have now read your book and really enjoyed it. It was by turns fascinating, depressing, bleak and inspiring. The thing is, where do you start in turning around opinion on council housing? It all feels a bit David and Goliath (albeit David won that one!). Corbyn apart, I was struck by the apparent absence of politicians within housing campaigns. Would Chuka Umunna ever back you? He should. I live in Eastbourne and we don’t have any Labour councillors, I don’t think, but we do have a seemingly good Labour candidate for MP, though he’s 20,000 votes or so from being elected. I smiled at your observation on how British people sit on their hands when volunteers are required. I could be like that; however, I would love to do something, however small, to help. One thing I can do is recommend your book and it’s beliefs to Jake Lambert, the aforementioned candidate. I’ll contact him.
Thanks Andrew, I really appreciate your comments. I think you’re right. One of the problems we face is the increasing sense that housing is out of our control. The passivity of politicians like Chuka Umunna re-enforces that. But we can’t wait for politicians to solve the housing crisis, any more than we can trust property developers to do the same. That said, ultimately housing comes down to politics and we have to win an argument, not just for council housing, but for decent, secure, truly affordable and safe homes for all. So you talking to Jake Lambert about the issues in my book can make a difference. Housing has rarely been more politically sensitive than it is now, even in Eastbourne (one of my favourite places incidentally). We have to seize this moment. If Mr Lambert’s interested, I’d be very happy to come down and talk about the book and its issues in the town.
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Hello, I did contact Jake Lambert in September and got a favourable response to having you as a speaker. He needed committee approval. Then silence, despite further prompts from me. Today I made an effort to speak to him as he was out leafleting in the town centre. He claimed he had seen your blog and contacted you but had no reply. Long story short, he is interested in having you speak about your book. Any thoughts on how to take this forward? He’s keen to have interesting speakers and you would definitely be that.
Hello Andrew, thanks for sticking with this. I rarely (if ever) ignore emails, so that’s odd, but not to worry. I’d still be very interested to come down, particularly as I feel the housing wheel is turning AND there could be a general election quite soon in which it could/should be a key issue. So please invite Jake to try again (glynrobbins@aol.com).
Hi Glyn, thanks for your offer to speak. That wasn’t the email address I contacted before so that might explain why I never heard back! We have a committee meeting on Tuesday so I’ll ask about possible dates then and email you some options.
Best wishes,
Jake
Chair, Eastbourne Labour
OK Jake, look forward to hearing from you. I was involved in the organisation of the national housing summit that took place yesterday. We had c200 grassroots campaigners from all over the country (including the south coast) and a very positive, determined mood reflecting the growing importance of the issue. We received the following message of support from Jeremy Corbyn which you might want to be aware of and share. Best wishes, Glyn
“I’m sorry I can’t be with you today. There’s never been a time when housing has been such an important issue for millions of people. We have a deepening housing crisis created by decades of allowing policy to be dictated by the market. Housing policy must be about providing homes for the many, not investment opportunities for the few.
This week’s Budget shows this government is not prepared to take the action needed to solve the crisis. Beneath the accounting tricks and spin, nothing they announced on Wednesday will guarantee that a single additional home is built.
We need to change direction. A Labour government will invest in housing. By doing that, we’re also investing in the next generation. So I want to see a return to building high quality, energy efficient council housing, with secure permanent tenancies and truly affordable rents. The post-war Labour government managed to build half a million council homes in five years. We need that scale of ambition again.
But we also need to look at other aspects of the housing crisis. The situation for private renters is appalling, paying half or more of their income on rent, often for sub-standard, overcrowded homes and mostly only ever two months away from an eviction notice. Labour will give cities the powers to introduce rent controls, and improve the tenancy conditions of private tenants so they can plan their lives without constant insecurity.
As I said in my speech at Labour Party conference, I also want to see an end to regeneration projects being used for social cleansing. That’s why the next Labour Government will put residents at the heart of estate management. As I said in my speech to Labour Party conference in September:
“When councils come forward with proposals for regeneration, we will put down two markers based on one simple principle:
Regeneration under a Labour government will be for the benefit of the local people, not private developers, not property speculators.
First, people who live on an estate that’s redeveloped must get a home on the same site and the same terms as before.
No social cleansing, no jacking up rents, no exorbitant ground rents.
And second councils will have to win a ballot of existing tenants and leaseholders before any redevelopment scheme can take place.
Real regeneration, yes, but for the many not the few.”
Grenfell Tower was a preventable disaster. Real Justice for Grenfell means a society where there’s decent, secure, truly affordable and safe homes for all. The next Labour government will deliver that.”
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