Table Of ContentUNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LOW-COST HOUSING IN SOUTH AFRICA:
AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF EMERGING SOCIO-TECHNICAL ISSUES
by
COLETTE GHISLAINE CLAUDINE FRANSOLET
Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree
Master of Technology: Design
in the Faculty of Informatics and Design
at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Supervisor: Rael Futerman
Co-supervisor: Prof. Mugendi K. M’Rithaa
Cape Town
(August 2015)
ABSTRACT
Low-cost housing is always an important / a weighty topic for discussion in South Africa
and the construction or occupation of such houses often makes media headlines. The
media usually raises the negative aspects of such housing, for instance, the fact that
these houses are sometimes poorly constructed, or that the administration systems for
allocating such houses to their new owners are often faulty, or that physical access to
them is limited, particularly for people with disabilities, and that social interactions
among the inhabitants of these houses is often problematic. It therefore appears that
the ‘design for all’ – or ‘Universal Design’ – approach has not been considered during
the design phases of these developments. Although Universal Design is not a new
concept, the South African National Building Regulations has a section specially for
creating physical access, but it is not widely practiced or implemented in South Africa,
let alone with the local housing sector. There is general lack of awareness, technical
know-how for the implementation and a lack of enforceable penalties for non-
compliance with this specific section of the Building Regulations (SANS 10400 Part S
of 2011).
This study aims to investigate some of the socio-technical issues that have arisen in
the low-cost housing sector, by specifically focusing on informal settlements in Cape
Town, South Africa. During the period of apartheid, pre-1994, population groups in
South Africa were segregated into separate residential areas; the aftermath of this is
still prevalent, as is the continued exclusion of marginalized groups within the low-cost
housing sector.
Data was collected through interviews with various people within the professional
sector including Architects, experts in Universal Design and people from organisations
that specialise in the planning/design/construction of low-cost Housing in Cape Town,
focusing on the lack of a more community orientated design approach that utilises the
principles of Universal Design as well as Universal Access building audits. Such audits
were conducted on houses and communities that were constructed prior to 2004, on
houses and communities that were designed and constructed after the passing of the
Breaking New Ground (BNG) policy (2010), as well as on proposed new housing
designs that were being considered for the future construction. The audits looked at
general circulation spaces, community involvement, sustainability and means of
construction. On the basis of these highlighted elements, in conjunction with the tender
requirements of low-cost housing, and the findings of the interviews, and through the
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lens of Universal Design and international and local best practice, a set of
recommendations was formulated in the form of requirements.
The study thus developed a set of practical guidelines to be considered when
designing and constructing low-cost housing developments. Ideally, these guidelines
would inform and determine the granting of tenders for the construction of low-cost
housing developments in informal settlements.
With the application of Universal Design thinking (through participatory design), future
low-cost housing developments in South Africa could accommodate previously
marginalized people without necessitating expensive structural changes. The
integration of all the members of an existing community within housing developments is
essential in forming cohesive and responsible communities and societies.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The author wishes to thank the following:
Shamus Frizhendry for igniting my interest in the field and for inspiring us to make
changes to the way in which we construct buildings. Dominique Brand for the helping
hand when I got lost. Graeme Green for the constant support, encouragement and
motivation. Josette Meyers for being the best mom in the world and for always
believing in me.
The Development Agency Group (DAG) and Ikhayalami for their willingness to share
information and to assist with my research. Keep up the great work: the people in the
informal settlements need the good work you are doing.
Phillip Thompson from IDC Consultants for being a driving force for Universal Design in
South Africa and an inspiration to young minds.
Prof. Mugendi K. M’Rithaa and Rael Futerman for supervision and guidance throughout
the research and making sure it finally got submitted.
The financial assistance of the National Research Foundation towards this research is
gratefully acknowledged. Opinions expressed in this thesis, and the conclusions arrived
at, are those of the author, and are not necessarily to be attributed to the National
Research Foundation.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION ................................................................................................................... ii
ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................... v
LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................. ix
LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................. xiii
GLOSSARY ....................................................................................................................... xiv
LIST OF ACRONYMS ........................................................................................................ 16
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY ........................................................... 2
1.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 2
1.2 Motivation for Choosing this Topic ......................................................................... 4
1.3 Contextualising the Housing Imperative ................................................................. 5
1.4 Objectives and Contributions of the Study .............................................................. 8
1.5 Delimitation of the Study ........................................................................................ 9
1.6 Structure of the Thesis ........................................................................................... 9
1.7 Summary.............................................................................................................. 10
CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................... 11
2.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 11
2.2 The Historical Divide ............................................................................................ 12
2.3 South African Laws and Policies to address Social Divisions ............................... 13
2.3.1 The Reconstruction and Development Program (RDP) ................................. 14
2.3.2 New Housing Policy and Strategy for South Africa ........................................ 15
2.3.3 The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa............................................ 16
2.3.4 Integrated National Disability Strategy White Paper ...................................... 17
2.3.5 Housing Act ................................................................................................... 18
2.3.6 Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act ................ 19
2.3.7 National Building Regulations ........................................................................ 20
2.3.8 Breaking New Ground ................................................................................... 21
2.4 Low-cost housing in South Africa ......................................................................... 23
2.5 Universal Design .................................................................................................. 30
2.5.1 Introduction to Universal Design .................................................................... 30
2.5.2 Brief History of Universal Design ................................................................... 32
2.5.3 Principles of Universal Design ....................................................................... 34
2.5.4 Importance of Universal Design ..................................................................... 35
2.5.5 Benefits of Universal Design.......................................................................... 37
2.5.6 Beneficiaries of Universal Design .................................................................. 37
2.5.7 Defining Disability .......................................................................................... 40
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2.5.8 Challenges along the Road ........................................................................... 45
2.6 Participatory Design ............................................................................................. 46
2.6.1 Introduction to Participatory Design ............................................................... 47
2.6.2 Brief History of Participatory Design .............................................................. 47
2.6.3 Importance of Participatory Design ................................................................ 48
2.6.4 Benefits of Participatory Design ..................................................................... 49
2.6.5 Beneficiaries of Participatory Design ............................................................. 49
2.6.6 Challenges along the Road ........................................................................... 50
2.7 Housing and Homes ............................................................................................. 52
2.7.1 Universal Human Needs ................................................................................ 52
2.7.2 Creating a Home ........................................................................................... 56
2.8 People’s Housing Process ................................................................................... 61
2.9 Summary.............................................................................................................. 62
CHAPTER THREE METHODOLOGY AND RESEARCH DESIGN .................................... 64
3.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 64
3.2 Research Questions ............................................................................................. 65
3.3 Research Design .................................................................................................. 65
3.4 Research Methodology ........................................................................................ 67
3.4.1 What are the International Best Practices with regard to Low-cost
Housing? ....................................................................................................... 67
3.4.2 Why is Universal Design not more widely implemented within Low-cost
Housing in South Africa? ............................................................................... 68
3.4.3 What are the Needs of People living in Low-cost Houses from a Socio-
technical Perspective?................................................................................... 68
3.4.4 How can Universal Design, informed by Participatory Design, better
address the Socio-technical Needs of People living in Low-cost Houses? ..... 69
3.5 Research Participants .......................................................................................... 71
3.5.1 Professional Sector ....................................................................................... 71
3.5.2 Community Participation ................................................................................ 72
3.6 Ethical Considerations.......................................................................................... 74
3.7 Measures and Analysis ........................................................................................ 74
3.7.1 Means of Quantification of Housing Development Research ......................... 74
3.7.2 Structured Interviews ..................................................................................... 78
3.7.3 Universal Design Audits/Reviews .................................................................. 79
3.8 Introduction to Research Findings ........................................................................ 80
3.8.1 Internal and Local Housing Development Comparisons ................................ 81
3.8.2 UD Audits on local houses ............................................................................ 87
3.9 Presentation of Findings ....................................................................................... 90
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3.10 Summary.............................................................................................................. 91
CHAPTER FOUR RESULTS AND DISCUSSION .............................................................. 94
4.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 94
4.2 International and Local Best Practices regarding Low-cost Housing..................... 95
4.2.1 International Examples .................................................................................. 98
4.2.2 Local Examples ........................................................................................... 114
4.2.3 Comparison and Discussion of Findings on Best Practices ......................... 133
4.3 Qualitative Results from Industry Professionals ................................................. 142
4.4 The Needs of People Living in Low-Cost Houses ............................................... 144
4.4.1 Audit of House constructed prior to 2004: Macassar ................................... 146
4.4.2 Audit of Houses constructed in 2013: Flamingo Vlei .................................... 151
4.4.3 Audit of Houses constructed in 2014: Ocean View ...................................... 157
4.5 Three Tier List of Recommendations .................................................................. 162
4.5.1 Tier One: Socio-Technical Needs in the Home ............................................ 165
4.5.2 Tier Two: Socio-Technical Needs in the immediate Precinct ....................... 167
4.5.3 Tier Three: Socio-Technical Needs in the surrounding Community ............. 169
4.6 Summary............................................................................................................ 175
CHAPTER FIVE CONCLUSION ...................................................................................... 178
5.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 178
5.2 Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 178
5.3 Limitations of the Research ................................................................................ 182
5.4 Recommendations for Future Research ............................................................. 183
5.5 Summary............................................................................................................ 184
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................ 186
APPENDIX A: Principles of Universal Design (source: Center for Universal Design,
2011) .................................................................................................................. 192
APPENDIX B: The Universal Declaration of Human Right (United Nations. 2013). .......... 193
APPENDIX C: Research Consent Form for Professional Interviews ................................ 196
APPENDIX D: Structured Interview Guidelines ................................................................ 199
APPENDIX E: Copy of application form for listing of the City of Cape Town Housing
Database. (City of Cape Town. 2014) ................................................................ 200
APPENDIX F: Universal Access Review as approved by IDC Consultants ...................... 203
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1.1: Aerial view of Langa Township just off the N2 Highway,
approximately 12km from the city centre of Cape Town. Most of Langa
Township consists of shack homes, which have been laid out in an
unstructured manner, as people relocated from the city. Image from: Google
Earth, Langa Township, Cape Town, South Africa. ....................................................... 2
Figure 1.2: Aerial view of New Rest settlement just off the N2 highway,
approximately 20km from the city centre of Cape Town. New Rest is an
example of the mass construction of low-cost housing, where little attention
appears to have been paid to the design of the area and the importance of
creating communities. Image from: Google Earth, New Rest Settlement, Cape
Town, South Africa. ...................................................................................................... 3
Figure 1.3: Processes of design thinking, which, when applied through the
lens of Universal Design, easily become Universal Design thinking. Image
from: India Design Council, 2014. ................................................................................. 4
Figure 1.4: A diagram of the ‘wicked problem’ associated with social housing
in South Africa. It illustrates how all the factors that influence housing are
interrelated and interlinked to create a complex multi-layered problem that
hampers delivery of housing (Source: Author’s construct, 2015). .................................. 7
Figure 2.1: An aerial view of the township of Gugulethu, Cape Town. Image
from: Google Earth, Gugulethu, Cape Town, South Africa. ......................................... 29
Figure 2.2: The accommodation of all member of society, including people with
disabilities, children and the elderly. (Image from: Designable Environments:
Consultants in Accessibility and Future Care Planning, n.d.) ...................................... 31
Figure 2.3: A direct example of how people could be “disabled by design”.
(Image from: 123RF. 2013) ......................................................................................... 36
Figure 2.4: User population pyramid of people who benefit from designing for
people above them in the pyramid. Image from: Preiser & Ostroff, 2001;
Goldsmith, 1976 .......................................................................................................... 39
(Preiser & Ostroff, 2001: Chapter 25.3) ....................................................................... 39
Figure 2.5: Hierarchy of Needs, based on Abraham Maslow’s model of the
stages. Image from: Altonen, n.d. ............................................................................... 53
Figure 2.6: Illustrations of the eight Millennium Development Goals for 2015,
which were initiated in 2000 by the United Nations of which South Africa is a
member. Image from: United Nations, 2000. ............................................................... 54
Figure 2.7: Home is where the heart is. Image from: Adamsdaughter, 2012. .............. 56
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Figure 3.1: Proposed research design methodology to indicate the research
methodology that was intended to be used to achieve the proposed research
outcomes (Source: Author’s construct, 2015).............................................................. 66
Figure 3.2 Research methodology to indicate the processes that was used to
achieve the desired research outcomes. (Source: Author’s construct) ........................ 70
Figure 3.3: Four main criteria for the evaluation of the long-term success of
low-cost housing developments, indicating the orientation of the criteria listed
in Table 7 (Author’s construct, 2015). ......................................................................... 78
Figure 3.4: Image of Box Houses in São Paulo, Brazil by Yuri Vital. (Damen,
2009) .......................................................................................................................... 81
Figure 3.5: Images of the Social Housing developments in Madrid, Spain by
Dosmasuno Arquitectos, photos by Miguel de Guzmán. (Chahine, 2011) ................... 81
Figure 3.6: Final construction of the social housing in Chile, by Elemental,
where the climate is desert like. (ArchDaily, 2008) ...................................................... 81
Figure 3.7: Final construction of low-cost housing in Mexico by Elemental.
Photos by Ramiro Ramirez (Bustler, 2010) ................................................................. 81
Figure 3.8: Social housing development in Port Elizabeth (Red Location),
South Africa by Wolff Architects and the NGO, PELIP Housing Company.
Photos by H. Wolff. (Noero Wolff Architects, 2011) ..................................................... 82
Figure 3.9: Marconi Beam also known as Joe Slovo Park is located near
Milnerton, Cape Town. Photo by Andrea Couvert. (Haysom, 2009: 1) ........................ 82
Figure 3.10: Freedom Park Informal Settlement Upgrade project by DAG.
Photo by Andrea Couvert. (DAG, 2009: 1) .................................................................. 82
Figure 3.11: Netreg Housing Project by DAG in Cape Town. (Torkelson, 2009:
22) .............................................................................................................................. 82
Figure 3.12: Location for which the tender, which was reviewed as part this
research, was required (Author’s construct via Google Maps, 2015). .......................... 84
Figure 3.13: “RDP” house located in Macassar on the outskirts of Cape Town.
(Fransolet, 2014) ........................................................................................................ 87
Figure 3.14: Social housing located in Flamingo Vlei, along the M3, Cape
Town. (Fransolet, 2014) .............................................................................................. 87
Figure 3.15: Social housing located in Ocean View. (Fransolet, 2014) ........................ 88
Figure 3.16: Student Residents in Mowbray, Cape Town, which has been
constructed with modular, precast ‘building blocks’. (Fransolet, 2014) ........................ 89
Figure 3.17: List of requirements generated by the research on local and
international housing developments, including onsite research and desktop
research, and categorised according to area of application, namely, Home,
Precinct or Community. (Author’s construct, 2014) ..................................................... 91
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Description:concept, the South African National Building Regulations has a section specially for designs that were being considered for the future construction.
