Ikea to build modular social housing in Bristol

The Ikea-owned modular building firm BoKlok has announced plans to develop 200 homes in south Bristol alongside Bristol City Council.

Bristol City Council, who owns the Airport Road site, has partnered with BoKlok as part of the five-year Bristol Housing Festival which is trialling innovative offsite housing solutions across the city.

The proposed development will be the first BoKlok community in Bristol. About 140 of the homes will be for market sale under the BoKlok brand. The remaining homes will be for social rent and shared ownership.

The Swedish company was created in the early 1990s and has already built 11,000 homes across Scandinavia. They said they specifically targetted Bristol as the perfect place to enter the UK market.

Last year, Bristol City Council announced they will be setting up their own housing company, which they hope will give the authority greater influence over what is built in the city.

Marvin Rees, Mayor of Bristol, said: ‘At the festival’s launch a year ago, we said we would invite ideas from all over the world and be imaginative in solving the city’s housing emergency. This is exactly what BoKlok will bring with these exciting plans.

‘We are also exploring how Bristol City Council might acquire a number of these new homes as part of our commitment to providing more social housing.’

NewStart recently travelled to Bristol to learn more about the Bristol Housing Festival, meeting director Jez Sweetland.

It’s hoped that by 2023, the festival will help drive through several modular housing communities in the city.

Jez Sweetland, Bristol Housing Festival’s Project Director, said: ‘The festival is all about re-imagining new and better ways to live in our cities. BoKlok provide creative solutions with a fantastic track record of creating great homes and strong communities, we are really thrilled to be working with them.’