Home sweet Wimpey home: artist's impression of the Oxley Park development
In early 2003, the deputy prime minister, John Prescott, launched his plan to build thousands of new homes in the south-east of England, writes Matt Weaver. Mr Prescott insisted this would not mean suburban sprawl, nor would it result in soulless estates or dormitory towns.
He didn't name names but we all knew that he was talking about the depressingly familiar, uniform, brick barracks that have sprung up in countless cul-de-sacs all over Britain in the last the 20 years, also known as "Barratt homes" and "Wimpey homes."
Well, what a difference a couple of years make.
Last week the deputy prime minister announced the first winners in his contest to build well-designed new homes for just £60,000. And what do you know: two of the winning consortia, who will get a chance to build on government-owned sites, are none other than Wimpey and Barratt.
At the last stage of the competition, doubts about the quality of the designs produced were expressed by, among others, the Guardian's architecture critic, Jonathan Glancey. But Mr Prescott insists that the designs have improved. Take a detailed look at the proposals in our gallery and decide for yourself. Is the house building industry upping its game at last? Or is this just a bit of window dressing for a high-profile competition?
