About Red Brick

The place for progressive housing debate

Red Brick is a progressive political blog with a particular focus on housing policy edited by Rose Grayston since March 2026.

As a forum it is open to anyone interested in the progressive debate about housing, communities, and wider politics.

We are linked to the Labour Housing Group but the views expressed here are those of individual authors and/or the editors and are not necessarily the view of LHG or London LHG.

Through debate and the sharing of ideas in this open forum, we will help to develop sound Labour housing policies, support Labour councils to do their best to address housing needs, and support LHG to make sure housing is seen a priority for Labour.

It was founded in 2010 by Tony Clements and Steve Hilditch and been previously edited by our pseudonymous friend Monimbo.

Red Brick editors:

2010 – 2022: Tony Clements, Steve Hilditch and Monimbo

2022 – 2024: Sheila Spencer

2024 – 2026: Alex Toal

2026 – Rose Grayston

Rose Grayston

Rose is editor of Red Brick. She has worked to develop and win support for solutions to the UK’s housing crisis as Expert Adviser to Matthew Pennycook, Minister for Housing and Planning, as a Labour activist and founding member of Open Labour, and through roles at Shelter, the New Economics Foundation and Generation Rent.

Steve Hilditch

Founder of Red Brick. Former Head of Policy for Shelter. Select Committee Advisor for Housing and Homelessness. Drafted the first London Mayor’s Housing Strategy under Ken Livingstone. Steve sits on the Editorial Panel of Red Brick.

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  Social rent council housing should be the Government’s first housing priority
  Martin Wicks from the Labour Campaign for Council Housing argues there is a growing gulf between the rhetoric on council housing and the reality.
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  A message to Andrew Griffith: cut build costs, not social housing
  Red Brick editor Rose Grayston explains why the Conservatives’ idea of a ‘one stop levy’ for social housing and infrastructure is a tried and tested dead end
• 
  Economic evictions – turning a blind eye?
  As families on the St James estate in Bermondsey face eviction, Jessica Field argues that the end of Section 21 risks leaving a new form of tenant displacement hidden from view.
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  Housing-led regeneration is the key to unlock hope in left behind communities
  Tracy Harrison is Chief Executive of the Northern Housing Consortium, a membership organisation for housing associations, local authorities and combined authorities in the North of England.