Scheming: A Social History of Glasgow Council Housing, 1919-1956

About the Book

When the Corporation of Glasgow undertook a massive programme of council house construction to replace the city's notorious slums after the First World War, they wound up reproducing a Victorian class structure. How did this occur? Scheming traces the issue to class-based paternalism that caused the reification of the local class structure in the bricks and mortar of the new council housing estates.
Sen Damer provides a sustained critique of the Corporation of Glasgow's council housing policy and argues that it had the unintended consequence of amplifying social segregation and ghettoisation in the city. By combining archival research of city records with oral histories, this book lets the locals have their say about their experience as Glasgow council house tenants for the first time.

Table of Contents:
AcknowledgementsPrefaceChapter 1: IntroductionChapter 2: Mosspark: Homes For for Heroes?Chapter 3: Hamiltonhill: Pioneering Slum-Clearance SchemeChapter 4: West Drumoyne: Blue-CollarlandChapter 5: Blackhill: Out of the SlumsChapter 6: Craigbank: Amateur Dramatics?Chapter 7: South Pollok: “The Bundy”Chapter 8: Alarums and ExcursionsAppendix 1: Balloting for a Council HouseAppendix 2: Methodological NotesBibliography

About the Author :
Seán Damer is Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. He has taught sociology in the Universities of Strathclyde, Trinity College, Dublin, Manchester, the West of Scotland and Glasgow. Since early retirement, he has turned to creative writing, published a novel, and is working on several films and television drama series.

Review :
Seán Damer’s book is a vital guide to the new estates – called ‘schemes’ in Scotland, hence the title – built between the wars and those built in the decade after 1945. It’s a deeply engaged social and political history, of interest not only to Glaswegians but to anyone seeking a critical understanding of council housing, its successes, failures and complexities... I recommend the book not only as rich and challenging account of council housing built at scale in one of our major cities but as a significant contribution towards our wider understanding of how to build badly and how to build well. Seán Damer’s book is a vital guide to the new estates – called ‘schemes’ in Scotland, hence the title – built between the wars and those built in the decade after 1945. It’s a deeply engaged social and political history, of interest not only to Glaswegians but to anyone seeking a critical understanding of council housing, its successes, failures and complexities... I recommend the book not only as rich and challenging account of council housing built at scale in one of our major cities but as a significant contribution towards our wider understanding of how to build badly and how to build well. A considerable contribution to the literature on Scottish housing history. Sean Damer’s exploration of 20th century council housing policy and practice is essential reading for all who seek to understand current social tensions in British cities. Meticulously researched and richly illustrated through the lived experience and testimony of Glasgow tenants, Damer provides a penetrating and convincing analysis of polarisation in contemporary British society.