BUILDING TRUST

INTERNATIONAL OPEN DESIGN COMPETITION

DEVELOPED COUNTRY

FOR A $30,000 SINGLE OCCUPANCY HOME

WITHIN AN URBAN AREA OF A

HOME

INTERNATIONAL

Single-person households are a worldwide phenomenon. It is estimated that single households account for 11.8 per cent of total households Worldwide, accounting

for more than 25 per cent of all households in Western Europe, North America and

Australasia; below 8 per cent of all households in the Asia Pacific, Latin

America and the Caribbean, and only 3.1 per cent of households in Africa and the

Middle East. In general, the trend towards single households seems to be closely

correlated to culture and living standards.

ABOUT THE COMPETITION

The aim of this competition is to;

Design a quality, low cost home that will tackle issues of homelessness and homes for the elderly in our society; Encourage and reward design excellence at a small scale which integrates function, structure, details and the need for shelter.

Research, respond to and highlight the unique aspects of designing a home with the constraints of a low budget on an urban site.

Encourage the employment of sustainable design in all aspects of the proposal and foster understanding of the impacts of housing trends on people’s health and wellbeing.

.......................................................................

COMPETITION STRUCTURE

This is a single stage competition with the aim of identifying the most appropriate proposal, which best satisfies the general and specific objectives of the contest.

THE FIGURES

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Annual Homeless Assessment Report found that shelters in 68 per cent of the cities must turn away unaccompanied individuals.

In 2010 more than 1.59 million people spent at least 1 night in an emergency shelter or transitional housing.

When asked to identify the main causes of homelessness among unaccompanied individuals, the highest number of City officials cited the lack of affordable housing.

In the UK rough sleeping counts in Autumn 2011were up 23 per cent on Autumn 2010. The older population is growing faster than the total population in practically all regions of the World and the difference in growth rates is increasing.

UK Government reports state that pension rates fail to keep up in times of economic boom and interest rates plummet when the economy fails leaving many pensioners below the poverty line.

INTRODUCTION

The challenge is to design an affordable home for an individual. The profile of these users is not defined within the brief “we’re leaving it up to you” but as a guide they could be the elderly, physically or mentally impaired or homeless and looking for the opportunity to stop the cycle of living in debt.

Lack of provision of quality small scale housing stock in developed countries often means those that are most vulnerable in our society live in sub-standard living conditions. The HOME design competition hopes to shed light on this and open the doors to designers and house builders that want to make a difference.

THE DEVELOPED WORLD

It’s not a term that we particularly like at Building Trust. Unfortunately however, it serves the need here. Kofi Anan once said “A developed country is one that allows all its citizens to enjoy a free and healthy life in a safe environment.” The map above shows countries that are deemed to be part of the developed nations as defined by the UN under the human development index (HDI.)

TACKLING THE ISSUE

Poor quality low cost housing is not confined to one of these countries but is a common theme within all of them. It is for this reason that we are asking you to nominate your own sites that you can explore in as much detail as you need. The subdividing of larger properties not only reduces 3-5 bedroom properties for family groups but also can lead to less than desirable living conditions due to poor quality, sub-standard bed-sits.

HDI

Unlike GDP per capita or per capita income, the HDI takes into account how income is turned, “into education and health opportunities and therefore into higher levels of human development.”

Changes in demographics, lifestyles and social structures will lead to further future demand for single occupancy housing. Taking the UK as an example despite growing in population, 18 per cent of the total population of England is projected to live alone by 2031, compared with about 11 per cent in 1997 and 13 per cent in 2006.

The scale of future demand for single occupancy housing, could herald a change in the design and feel of urban spaces and a change to new forms of social relationships based on a mix of communalism and highly protected individualism.

The average United Kingdom (UK) household size decreased from 2.41 persons per households in 1997 to 2.32 in 2006, and is estimated to decrease to 2.13 by 2031. Single-person households are projected to increase by 163,000 per year, from 6.8 million in 2006 to 10.9 million in 2031. The increase in one person households accounts for two-thirds of the total increase in the households’ number. According to predictions, singleton households could outnumber any other kind of household by 2031. Although figures here are based on the UK the theme is consistent across developed countries.

BACKGROUND CAUSE AND EFFECT

In general, there are three main groups of people living on their own: single young people, middle-aged divorcees and the elderly. With the ageing of the population, many more elderly people are likely to live on their own after their partner dies. It is estimated that by 2031, 32 per cent of households will be headed by those aged 65 or over, up from 26 per cent in 2006. At the same time, there is an increasing trend of young people delaying marriage. The high levels of divorce, breakdown of traditional family values and structures and the unstable economy have also contributed to the rise in single households as well as single-parent households.

RISING AGEING POPULATION

HIGHER LEVELS OF DIVORCE AND SEPARATION

We welcome designs that can be sited in an urban area in any of the countries from the list below:

Norway Australia Netherlands United States New ZealandCanada Ireland Liechtenstein GermanySweden SwitzerlandJapan Hong Kong IcelandSouth KoreaDenmark

SITE SELECTION

LuxembourgSingaporeCzech RepublicUnited KingdomGreeceUnited Arab EmiratesCyprus Andorra Brunei DarussalamEstonia SlovakiaMaltaQatarHungaryPolandLithuania

IsraelBelgium Austria France SloveniaFinlandSpainItalyPortugalBahrainLatviaChileArgentinaCroatia Barbados

Once you have decided which area you would like to work in please find a site and situate your project. We want to know why you think the site could have the potential to offer a home. We know that it may not be possible to find out every detail about a site i.e. cost, land ownership, etc. However, we do expect a certain level of study into the site conditions that may inform any design. It would of course be great if you can give more information regarding cost of land and ownership but it is not a marked criterion.

PROGRAM GUIDELINES

The home design program should create a warm, safe environment and conform to local guidelines unless you stipulate otherwise. In some cities stricter building regulations and planning law can be avoided if the building is semi-permanent with the option to relocate. This may be a way of reducing the overall costs but we would expect this to be clearly developed and for strategies of modularisation and transport to be fully explored and explained.

As a guide you should investigate the legislation in your chosen country/city for the;

- Minimum floor areas for the combined cooking, eating and living areas (CEL areas, the Kitchen/Dining/Living areas), allowing the designer to distribute the spaces between these three areas as they wish - Minimum floor areas for bedrooms - Gross habitable area per occupant - Minimum floor area requirements for internal storage- Minimum room dimensions and proportions- “dirty” storage (e.g. bin store)- built in storage- Internal play space- External recreational space (balcony/shared space)- Mobility & access

Designs should focus on the functionality of the key areas of the dwelling, from the residents’ perspective. This may allow for combinations of uses and blurring between more conventional divisions of space.

Additional considerations;

- Bathroom/wash area- Utility area (NB. Laundry both washing and drying space)- Any additional circulation space

We are purposefully leaving the specification of minimum areas definable by each contestant as the regulations governing space requirements differ from country to country and city to city. We believe that we will not find a ‘one size fits all solution’ but that we will be able to offer a critique of existing law and regulations that may benefit single occupancy housing standards and more importantly those living in single occupancy housing.

SUGGESTED PLAN

1 - Find a site: Within a city (pop100.000+) for example an in-fill site, a warehouse, redundant parking space(s), under transport infrastructure, on top of a building, etc...

NB: If you would prefer to suggest a generic home solution, please skip stage 1.

.................................................................................................................................................................................

2 - Research: Site and housing solutions(Think both inside + outside of the box)

3 - Test: develop and refine

4 - Propose

ENERGY

Single households still require the same quantity of household appliances as all other households. These household appliances include washing machines, refrigerators, televisions and hi-fi stereos.Single households take up more space per capita as well as consume more energy and resources. According to a study of UK single households conducted in 2006, one-person households consume 38% more products, 42% more packaging, 55% more electricity and 61% more gas per capita than four-person households. The larger per capita expenditure on household appliances and energy can lead to less disposable incomes and reduced purchasing power for the segments of single households comprising elderly people.

With this in mind we will be giving preference to those designs strategies that reduce energy consumption.

WELLBEING

Another area of concern is the psychological impact of living alone. We expect that this area will be considered. Reduced sense of community and break down within family units contributes to an individual’s sense of wellbeing. Location, arrangement and space planning should be thought about and should be clear in the designs presentation. Designs should be accessible and respond to the users requirements.

We realise the opportunity for single applications where space is limited but we do also accept submissions that consider the clustering of units and we will accept design proposals where the generic cost per unit falls below the limit set.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS

The design should be accessible and inclusive, you should display a sensitivity to the access needs of elderly and those with physical /mental impairments.

Submissions can be the work of an individual or a group. There is no age limit. However, entrants under 18 years of age must be led or entered by someone over 18 year of age. Interdisciplinary teams are encouraged to enter the competition.

..............................................................................................................................

THOSE ELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE

Those within the Built environment; Designers, House builders, Architects, Engineers, Architecture graduates or Architecture students.

..............................................................................................................................

THOSE INELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE

Employee, staff, consultant, agents or family members of Building Trust International personnel.

..............................................................................................................................

RESTRICTIONS

There are no restrictions for this international competition.

Registration and participation in the competition implies an immediate acceptance by the entrants of all terms & conditions governing the site and competition.

AWARDS

Professional Category1st prize: We will pursue funding and planning for the winning design. There will also be 9 honourable mentions.

Student Category1st prize: $500There will also be 4 honourable mentions...............................................................................................................................

PUBLICATION

1st Prize, will be published in any subsequent magazine press as well as theBuilding Trust Website:

There will also be a book that will be compiled of the best designs from the professional and student categories.

..............................................................................................................................

COMPETITION PROJECT DISCLAIMER

This is an open International competition hosted by Building Trust international to shed light on the issues facing those affected by poverty in developed countries, while generating progressive contemporary design ideas.

REGISTRATION

Professional registrationDonation: £95.00 (All donations will go directly to funding this and other building trust projects.)

Student registrationRegistration: £0.00 (No fee)

Entrants may register by emailing competitions@buildingtrustinternational.org We will then provide you with a unique entry number.

Method of payment:Payments from the UK and internationally can be made by bank transfer or through ‘mydonate’ with your unique reference number once you have contacted us.Barclays Bank:Account name: Building TrustAccount number 63659070Sort Code: 20-49-76

SCHEDULE

Competition officially announced - 1st April 2012Final date for registration and fee payment - 30th June 2012Closing date for submissions - 31st July 2012Jury evaluation - 1st- 30th August 2012 Announcement of Winners to be posted on www.buildingtrustinternational.org - 15th September 2012..............................................................................................................................

DEADLINES

All entry submissions must be sent via email to competitions@buildingtrustinternational.org until 31st July 2012 at midnight (11:59 pm.GMT). Competitors will be responsible for the arrival of their proposals within the corresponding deadlines and no proposal will be received one day after the date previously stated.

mydonate:https://mydonate.bt.com/charities/buildingtrustinternational(if you are based in the UK please remember to tick the gift aid box. Thank you)

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Submission of entries must be in A3 format with all images at 300dpi and a maximum of four pages sent to: competitions@buildingtrustinternational.org

Subject of email: Subject of the email must be your unique registration number, which you will receive once you have registered.

Presentation panels : you can use up to 4 sheets at A3 format these should be horizontal (landscape) and can run together or stand alone as separate sheets

Dimensions: (1 A3 board = 420 x 297 mm / 16.5 x 11.7 in) x 4

File name: The zipped image file name must correspond to your unique registration number.(Example: BTI3333.jpg where BTI3333 represents your unique registration number assigned and sent to you by Building Trust International after a successful registration).

Text file: Any text contained on the boards should also be sent as a separate text file in word format.

ADDITIONAL SUBMISSION INFORMATION

The presentation technique is open and at the discretion of the entrant. However, it is recommended that the image submitted includes the following information which reflects the main concept of the design:

Sketches, perspectives or renders representing your design in use,Plans,Sections,Elevations,Any additional diagrams showing how the elements are arranged or materials are used.

The presentation should clearly document the proposed design as well as the approach to the project. Ideas regarding organisation, materials, treatment of the location and the design should be included when considered relevant. This will be used to make rough cost estimates and test the buildability of any winning design chosen.

The total area of the project should be included in a part of the image. Any other textual or numerical description should be expressed in English only and it should be incorporated into the graphical presentation of the project.

Entrant’s unique registration number should appear on the upper right side of the image. Do not place your name or company name on any of the competition panels

Note:

Entrants are advised to send their submissions from the email address used for the registration with Building Trust, as submissions from a different or unrecognisable e-mail account might be treated as spam and also prevent us from tracing you in the event we have to contact you.

JURY

The Jury for this International competition will be comprised of respected professionals, interested parties & supporters.

Competition Supported by:

..more partners to be confirmed.

...................................................................................

EVALUATION AND JUDGING PROCESS

The Jury will review the submitted entries based on the competition objectives and from the short-listed entries select the competition winners with a Building Trust. consultant over-seeing each stage of the process.

The Jury’s decision will be final as stated in the competition’s terms and conditions....................................................................................

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Entries will be evaluated based on the following 5 main criteria:1st Intelligent use of space and thought paid to design both in finished form and in the ease of construction and on site delivery.2nd Adaptability and accessibility.3rd The design’s aesthetics and originality.4th The use of sustainable materials and reduced energy consumption strategy.5th Clarity, originality and comprehensibility of the design.

COMMUNICATION & TECHNICAL ENQUIRES

All communications should be done through Building Trust International and not any of the other interested parties.

..............................................................................................................................

QUERIES AND QUESTIONS

All queries regarding the registration, process, fees or payment email any questions to:competitions@buildingtrustinternational.org

..............................................................................................................................TERMS & CONDITIONS

Please see the terms and conditions section on www.buildingtrustinternational.org

..............................................................................................................................

- Building Research Establishment’s Housing Design Handbook (1993) - National Housing Federation’s Guide to Standards & Quality (1998). - Dept for Business Innovation and Skills: Singleton Settlements: The Increase in Single Households- UK Office for National Statistics: Communities and Local Government and Office for National Statistics. (2009)Household Projections to 2031, England. Housing Statistical Release. - Euromonitor International: (2007) One person households: Opportunities for consumer goods companies- www.hudhre.info/documents/2010HomelessAssessmentReport.pdf- www.communities.gov.uk/documents/statistics/pdf/2093657.pdf

SOURCES

Copyright © 2012 www.BuildingTrustInternational.org. All Rights Reserved.Charity Registration Number 1142338