ABOUT US
Better housing, together
We’re YIMBYs: we believe that everyone deserves a high quality, safe and affordable place to live. That means we want to see better places and more homes built with the support of local communities. YIMBY stands for “Yes in my back yard”: we support more high-quality homes near us.
YIMBY Alliance is an alliance of campaigns working to end the housing crisis. Check out our local groups as well as some great National campaigns!
join your local campaign
Can’t see a campaign near you? Why not start a group yourself – it’s easy!
Our Team
JOHN MYERS
John Myers is Director of YIMBY Alliance. Inspired by the grassroots movement for affordable housing in the US, John brought together a team to work with communities on sustainable ways to end the housing crisis. John is co-author of the joint YIMBY Alliance and Tony Blair Institute Report, The Urgent Need to Build More Homes. In his spare time, John is a trustee of the London Forum of Amenity and Civic Societies. John trained as a lawyer.
KANE EMERSON
Kane Emerson is head of housing research at YIMBY Alliance. As a political activist and organiser, Kane has heard about poor housing conditions and overcrowding on hundreds of doorsteps across the country. Kane co-wrote the UK Day One report proposing Tempsford New Town, which received wide national media coverage. He is co-author of the joint YIMBY Alliance and Tony Blair Institute report, The Urgent Need to Build More Homes, and the UK Day One report Fast Wins on Planning for Housing. Kane is also a school governor, chair of his estate’s residents’ association and treasurer of the Labour Party Irish Society.
News
Auckland upzones, again: an update from New Zealand
This is a guest post from Marko Garlick. Marko is a lawyer from New Zealand. He was a director on a pro-housing campaign which led to the widespread upzoning of Wellington in May 2024. Note that Marko sits on an expert advisory group that advises the New Zealand...
The biodiversity bottleneck
Image: a disused that does little for biodiversity. Source: Wikimedia Commons This is a guest post from Alfie Robinson. Alfie is a historian and heritage consultant operating across England, with a keen interest in policy issues. You can find Alfie on LinkedIn or find...
Reform planning to build more social homes
Social homes are a crucial component of the UK’s housing mix. They are a vital tool in addressing the housing crisis and ensuring everyone can have a safe place to live. There are over 1.2 million people on local authority housing waiting lists, and many more who...
YIMBY wins around the world (September 2024)
US reform successes Recent research shows that 50 housing bills passed US state legislatures in the first half of 2024, compared to only 30 in the same time last year. In the preceding twelve months, 65 housing supply bills have been enacted. You can read more...
New Report: the Urgent Need to Build More Homes
UK housing is at a crisis point. Skyrocketing costs, inadequate supply, and misaligned incentives have created a perfect storm that impacts every aspect of our society - from individual aspiration to national economic growth. The Government has won a landslide...
Location matters: price per square metre in England and Wales
It’s obvious that the price of a home varies massively from place to place, but simply comparing the average cost of properties sold can hide some major differences - particularly in the size of each home. The average cost of a home in London is £520,000 whilst in the...
YIMBY wins around the world
With a new Government that is extremely focused on building more homes, it seems a good time to revive our regular update on YIMBY successes around the world, from New Zealand to California. ADUs Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are small, normally single storey, homes...
The Power of Proactive Estate Renewal
This piece was first published in the Fabian member policy group report "Homes for London" Introduction The Labour Party has a proud history of building council homes. A century ago, during Labour’s first Government under Ramsay MacDonald, housing defined Labour’s...
Mansards on the up
By Alfie Robinson What is a mansard? A mansard takes a normal roof, and stretches it upwards to create liveable space. Where a normal roof has little more than trusses, cobwebs, and perhaps some insulation, a mansard tucks away bedrooms, bathrooms and living rooms....