We’re the present, not the future: why the housing sector needs to listen to young people

If the housing sector wants to build places that will stand the test of time, it needs to start listening to those of us who will live with the decisions being made today for the longest. This takes time and genuine effort.

It means explaining what is happening in communities in an accessible way, creating spaces where we feel comfortable speaking honestly and avoiding technical language that shuts us out. If homes and places are being designed with our future in mind, then we need to be apart of those conversations.

Before I started my work experience at Mount Anvil, I thought housing was just construction. Bricks, cranes, hard hats – that is what I saw around me every day. But once I stepped inside the industry, I realised how much there was to it. Design, finance, community engagement, marketing, customer experience and so much more, all playing a role in shaping an estate.

“Imagine if young people were involved meaningfully in shaping London’s existing estates. The homes would reflect the reality of modern families, catering to different sizes, needs and ways of living”

The reality is that most young people never get this kind of exposure. That is why I’m proud to be flying the flag for more engagement and opportunities for us, as a founding member of the Future London Makers.

Future London Makers is a platform created by Mount Anvil in partnership with the Greater London Authority to meaningfully engage with people aged 16 to 21, listen to our ideas and help us shape the future of London’s housing estates by giving us a seat at the table.

Imagine if young people were involved meaningfully in shaping London’s existing estates. The homes would reflect the reality of modern families, catering to different sizes, needs and ways of living.

Playgrounds are another obvious example, often treated as an afterthought: a few squeaky swings squeezed into leftover space. But for kids and teenagers, they’re the heart of the community. If young people had helped design the estate I grew up on, the play spaces would have been somewhere you couldn’t drag us away from.

At the recent launch of Future London Makers at City Hall, we spoke with deputy mayor Tom Copley about what we hope to get out of the programme over the course of this year: a deeper understanding of the places around us and how decisions are made, more confidence to share ideas and opinions about housing in London and opportunities for our voices to make a real difference on the estates Mount Anvil is working on.

“Future London Makers proves that listening to young people is possible and powerful. It strengthens design. It builds trust. It improves outcomes”

For the next year, the other Future London Makers and I will visit estates at various stages of development, meet people working across the sector and contribute ideas on how to make estates safer, healthier and more welcoming. There will be industry mentoring and skills development, and we’ll be paid the London Living Wage for our time and contributions, meaning our perspectives are valued – and not treated as a favour.

Future London Makers proves that listening to young people is possible and powerful. It strengthens design. It builds trust. It improves outcomes. It opens doors to careers many of us did not know existed. And it sets a higher standard for what community-led estate regeneration and housing delivery can look like.

Firdaous Idris, founding member, Future London Makers