George said: “I’m pushing the Government as hard as possible to recycle Britain’s empty homes and to improve the quality of new housing.”

George showed that in virtually every city in Britain there is a huge problem with empty homes – many of them privately owned – blighting local communities. He’s has been calling for a low-cost loan fund that would help get these individual properties back into use for families who need a home. And while that is set to become a reality in Scotland and Wales, there is still a long way to go before George’s campaign aims become fully realised across the UK.

George’s campaign also revealed how whole streets of houses have been left empty since funding for the controversial Pathfinder regeneration scheme dried up, and he’s been talking to a range of organisations to try and find ways to save as many of these homes as possible.

Now, the government has asked George to help find a solution to the problem of empties – and he says he relishes the chance to make a real difference. More than 115,000 people have pledged their support and signed the Great British Property Scandal’s online petition since the series was broadcast in December 2011. The new appointment means he will now be able to help influence empty homes policy on behalf of all those people.
As independent empty homes adviser George will:
• Raise public awareness of the benefits of bringing empty homes back into use and encourage people to report empty homes in their area;

• Encourage councils, housing associations and voluntary groups to identify innovative and good ideas and share this across communities;

• Challenge Government and other public bodies to ensure publicly-owned homes are not left empty; and

• Explore whether current plans for demolition in councils could be scaled back

As George says, “There are hundreds of thousands of empty homes that could and should be saved from the bulldozers and refurbished. I totally support the building of new homes when it’s necessary, but not when it’s cheaper and quicker to refurbish empty homes than to build from scratch.
It can be kinder to communities and the environment – and it makes sense in these tough economic times. I care passionately about this subject and I’ll leave no stone unturned in my efforts to find a solution to the problem and get these houses back into use for the families who need them.”
Speaking of the appointment, Housing Minister Grant Shapps said: “George Clarke has been a phenomenal campaigner against the scourge of empty homes. His popular Great British Property Scandal programme raised the issue up the agenda. I’m pleased to report that the number of empty homes has fallen in the two years since this government came to office. Now we hope to accelerate that work further with £150 million of investment and George Clarke as our Empty Homes Adviser.”

Friday 16th15.30 -16.30
Wednesday 21st & Saturday 24th
11.30-12.30
Monday 26th
15.30 -16.30
Tuesday 27th
13.30-16.30
Thursday 29th
13.30-14.30 George Clarke –  DIY DAD of the YEAR
Friday 30th
11.30-12.30
15.30-16.30
Saturday 31st (LAST DAY OF SHOW)
11.30-12.30

Speaking about the announcement today George said: “I am thrilled to be an Ambassador for Shelter and I am excited to be a part of the charity’s vital work supporting homeless and badly housed families.

“Being an architect I know how important it is to have a safe and secure home that meets the needs of the household and what a difference having a good home makes to people’s lives.””

Shelter understands the harm that bad housing causes and the burden it puts on families, relationships, health and children’s education.

Shelter believes that everyone has a right to a decent, safe and affordable home and is unrelenting in the fight to make this a reality.

Every year, more than a million people approach Shelter for help by visiting their website, calling their national helpline or contacting their network of local housing advice services. Shelter also campaigns for more affordable housing and new laws and policies to ease the housing crisis.

Across the country, thousands of old buildings lie forgotten and neglected, tangled up by red tape and development restrictions. Many of these orphaned properties are steeped in history and are of outstanding architectural interest, yet are slowly being left to rot.

Architect George Clarke is passionate about our architectural heritage. He travels the British Isles meeting the stubborn romantics who want to breathe new life into the architectural treasures he unearths on his journey. His mission is to help them transform these undervalued gems into brand new homes fit for 21st century living.

Restoration Man watches as these wonderful buildings – from windmills and ancient towers to gate lodges and medieval churches – are transformed. But threatened by spiralling budgets and the credit crunch, plus the stresses and strains of working with old structures and confusing bureaucracy, none of these projects are an easy ride.

Architect in the House is a fantastic scheme run by Shelter and the Royal Institute of British Architects. Basically, the general public make a donation to Shelter in exchange for an hour of a local architects time to give a design consultation about their home. Its a great way of raising money for Shelter, while also giving the opportunity for homeowners to see the architectural potential of their home.

· What’s the benefit of an architect – isn’t a builder just as good?

A builder won’t give you the creative ideas you need for your home to be transformed to improve the way you live. An architect has been trained to understand a client’s brief, to see the opportunities in an existing home and to help create beautiful spaces that you would have never otherwise imagined. Architecture really is life changing stuff and only an architect can do this for you.

· Should we move less and adapt our homes more to accommodate changing stages in life & family? – examples of how an architect can help adapt a property

Don’t get me wrong, I love well-designed and innovative new build homes. But, I’m really passionate about how our 25 million existing homes can be redesigned and dragged into the 21st Century. You can see how I’ve done this for very old and unique buildings in Restoration Man, but I’ve also turned very ordinary homes into very special places on more affordable budgets when I made The Home Show and more recently The Great British Property Scandal. Our existing houses have so much potential to be transformed into exciting and unique family homes while at the same time being ecological and sustainable. An architect can help you do all of these things.

· How can people get involved in your campaign against empty properties – how can people help at local level?

Firstly they can sign up to support my campaign at www.channel4.com/propertyscandal and they can also download the Empty Home Spotter app to record any empty home in their area. Secondly, they can lobby their local MP and their local council to push for empty homes to be brought back into use. We should never accept long term empty homes in any area of Britain while there are still thousands of people so desperately in need of a decent and affordable home.

· Being a Shelter Ambassador – what’s involved?

I’ll do anything to support Shelter. Their work they do is incredible. When I hear that 1.6 million children in Britain are living in over-crowded, temporary or run-down accommodation it just breaks my heart. Our kids need stability, love, support and a decent roof over their head. Its not much to ask for in our ‘developed world’. If we don’t give our kids a decent home it will effect their health, their education and their future. Thats how important our homes are. They aren’t just bricks and mortar, our homes are incredibly powerful places that craft our children’s future. Until every child in Britain has a decent home I won’t stop doing whatever Shelter want me to do to raise awareness and money.

George has found streets of houses caught up in red tape in areas where thousands of people are on housing waiting lists. He’s met owners of properties that have been empty for years. And he’s met people on the sharp end of the housing crisis – ex-soldiers sleeping on sofas, single mothers in overcrowded conditions and families from a professional background forced to give up on the dream of ever owning their own home.

“It’s a crying shame that there are 350,000 long-term empty properties in the UK while 2 million families desperately need a home.” says George.

“What I have seen has convinced me more than ever that urgent change is needed – and we can’t just leave it to the government and councils to sort out our empty homes problem.”

Britain’s Empties: Some Home Truths

• We’re currently building 100,000 fewer new houses than we need every year.

• The coalition has made £100 million of funding available to refurbish empty homes, but even this will only bring 3,300 empty homes back into use over three years. This un-ambitious target is just 1% of the number of long-term empty homes.

• Over 85% of Britain’s empty homes are privately owned and any solution to the problem needs to address these owners. Many empty home owners would be happy to find occupants for their houses if only they had some help. It is important to find ways to help them get their houses back into use.

• Britain’s 350,000 long-term empty houses are a wasted asset to both the country and their owners. Given the huge demand and need for homes, Britain could do way better in this regard.

The Solution: Fill Up Britain’s Empty Homes

The government has announced its intention to introduce a range of measures in England to bring empty homes back into use but George reckons what they are doing doesn’t go far enough. And while devolved national governments in Wales and Scotland are considering action on empty homes, they are currently lagging behind the work being done in England and certainly need to do more.

We’re proposing two simple but effective changes that will give individuals and communities the power to take on Britain’s empties and the resources to get them back into use:

1. A law change to give communities and individuals the power to turn abandoned properties in their local area into homes for people who need them.

2. Access to low-cost loan funds for people who need financial help to get empty properties back into use.

Show your support for our campaign to fill up Britain’s empty homes

Sign Up: The campaign will be kicking off over the next two months. Until then, keep up to date by liking the Empty Homes Facebook page

George says the last government made efforts to regenerate, under John Prescott (pictured), but the figures didn’t add up
‘You have some privately owned properties where the owners have fallen on hard times, are in negative equity and can’t afford to sell. They can’t rent either if it is an older house, with maybe a boiler that needs replacing. So the house just sits, but the more it does so, the less habitable it becomes. It’s a vicious circle.
‘Then there are the entire streets and estates – often local authority owned – that are no longer habitable. ‘That is despicable. The last government made efforts to regenerate, under John Prescott, but the figures didn’t add up. Now it is too late for a lot of areas. Any architect or developer would balk at the idea of getting involved.’ The idea of entire estates going under horrifies George. He grew up in a council house in the then new town of Washington in the Northeast, and his mother still lives in the property.
‘It’s only now that I realise how lucky we were. Our estate was built as part of the slum clearances of the 1960s, and it worked. It really worked. We had very little money, but we had a well-designed three-bedroomed house, with a garden front and back. The sense of community was amazing. Can young families starting out today expect the same? Of course they can’t. Things have become so polarised. My house is worth a ridiculous amount of money, yet I don’t see how my children will ever be able to afford properties of their own.’

Thanks to the Daily Mail for the interview with George – read their full article here.

The House Beautiful Awards 2011 was held this year in one of England’s finest Art Deco buildings, Freemasons’ Hall in London. The awards comprised 26 categories, commending not only the UK’s top TV personalities but also 2011’s best homes products and retailers.

In addition to the three reader-voted awards, an impressive panel of judges, including experts John Rocha, Jeff Banks, Sophie Conran, Naomi Cleaver, Oliver Heath, Nick Munro, Lisa Stickley, Simon Boyle, David Domoney and Tommy Walsh, joined forces with House Beautiful Editor Julia Goodwin to select a further 23 category winners.

Dunelm Mill won the prestigious Home Retailer of the Year Award. Other winners included John Lewis, which scooped Online Retailer of the Year; the Red Star range by Emma Bridgewater won Best of British; and Lisa Stickley, picked up The Editor’s Award for her outstanding design in fabrics and ceramics.

House Beautiful Editor Julia Goodwin says, ‘In tough economic times quality and value are vitally important in making good products and services stand out from the rest of the crowd. The House Beautiful Awards recognises excellence ­– pointing consumers towards the best of the best.’