Clarion Housing Group

Clarion Housing Group is the country's largest housing association, providing a home to around 360,000 people across England. The group builds more than 2,000 new homes a year and, through its charitable foundation Clarion Futures, supports residents into work, improves neighbourhoods and invests in sustainability.

Latimer is the development arm of Clarion Housing Group, responsible for delivering new mixed-tenure homes and large-scale placemaking, including new garden communities. One such project is the Tendring Colchester Borders Garden Community in Essex, a new settlement being brought forward with local authority partners and a design team appointed through open competition.

Clarion's mission is to provide homes for those who need them most, with a focus on affordable, sustainable communities and long-term regeneration.

In this Architecture Social conversation, Project Director Russ Edwards explains how an architect's skill set translates into development, what he looks for from design teams competing for work, and how regenerative design thinking is shaping a 25-year placemaking project.