New Homes in New Ways - Collaboration and Innovation through Modern Methods of Construction

Are Modern Methods of Construction the Answer to the UK Housing Crisis?

The New Homes in New Ways exhibition will tell the story of how Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) can accelerate the supply of new homes, with an emphasis on delivering the social rent housing needed at pace amidst the current housing emergency.  

The exhibition is co-curated by the Building Centre and Housing Festival, a think-and-do tank based in Bristol. It draws on the recently released Social Rent Housing at Pace Playbook (2024), which demonstrates the opportunity for the public sector to incubate a new supply chain of factory-manufactured housing, while unlocking ‘unlikely’ land and rethinking the economics. Launched by Housing Festival, the Playbook is a response to our broken housing system and severe shortfall of safe and secure social rent homes. 

Studio Partington/Melius Homes MMC for Energiesprong retrofit, Nottingham © Melius Homes

Building an Informed Picture of Real-life Experiences

The exhibition will include case studies and a showcase of the latest in new housing technology and discuss the environmental, social and financial benefits of providing homes built through MMC. Amidst calls for, and promises of, genuinely affordable new homes - this exhibition will shine a light on our growing Temporary Accommodation crisis and demonstrate how new high-quality, low-carbon homes can be delivered at scale and pace.  

The event series (online and in-person) will highlight international references and case studies too, and by discussing MMC at international and national scale, we hope to bring change at local level and encourage new housing to be built with quality. It will also explore how a human-centric, outcome-led approach that embeds values into the design and delivery of new homes could benefit residents, communities and wider society.