Prefabs (prefabricated homes) were a major part of the delivery plan to address the United Kingdom's post–World War II housing shortage. They were envisaged by war-time prime minister Winston Churchill in March 1944, and legally outlined in the Housing (Temporary Accommodation) Act 1944.
Taking the details of the public housing plan from the output of the Burt Committee formed in 1942, the wartime coalition government under Churchill proposed to address the need for an anticipated 200,000 shortfall in post-war housing stock, by building 500,000 prefabricated houses, with a planned life of up to 10 years, within five years of the end of the Second World War. The Housing (Temporary Accommodation) Act 1944 aimed to deliver 300,000 units within 10 years, within a budget of £150 million.
Through use of the wartime production facilities and creation of common standards developed by the Ministry of Works, the programme got off to a good start and, of 1.2 million new houses built between 1945 and 1951 when the programme officially ended, only 156,623[1] prefab houses were constructed.[2][3] Today, a number survive, a testament to the durability of a series of housing designs and construction methods only envisaged to last 10 years. On the back of this scheme, local authorities developed non-traditional building techniques, which included some prefabrication, notably pre-cast reinforced concrete (PRC), to fulfil the underestimated demand.
- ^ "A Short History of Prefabs - Building the Post War World" (PDF). The Prefab Museum. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
museumwaleswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Sturgis, Matthew (11 October 2003). "The century makers: 1945". London: The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 8 March 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2010.