Creating inclusive communities through balancing social mix: a critical relationship or tenuous link?
Kathy Arthurson, University of South Australia
Urban Policy and Research, vol 20, no 3, 2002
This paper explores some fundamental assumptions being linked by state housing authorities to `social mix' strategies in contemporary Australian public housing estate regeneration policy. Six case study estates, two each in New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland, form the basis of the empirical analysis. The two major ideas emerging from South Australian and Queensland projects are: first that lowering concentrations of public housing and developing more mixed income communities offers a means to reconnect socially excluded public housing tenants to mainstream society; and second that a balanced social mix is a prerequisite for the development of `inclusive', `sustainable' and `cohesive' communities. However, in light of the empirical findings that strong cohesive communities already exist on some estates prior to regeneration commencing, there is no evidence that a balanced social mix is a necessary condition for building inclusive communities. Coupled with the finding of inadvertent negative consequences of social mix policies, the paper questions whether policy makers are over-emphasising the extent to which social mix assists regeneration.
Dr Kathy Arthurson (email) website Senior Research Fellow School of Natural and Built Environments University of South Australia Business: (08) 8302 2232
