Heritage Open Day: In 1953, the Coal Board built 210 prefab Airey houses in Oulton. They were loved by tenants, but design flaws and landlord neglect led to eviction and demolition. Jessica Field explores prefab promises and pitfalls and 70 years of life on the estate. Join historian Dr Jessica Field for a talk about the architecture and social history of Oulton's National Coal Board housing estate – a prefab Airey neighbourhood made famous by a recent campaign to prevent demolition and tenant eviction.
Airey houses were 'permanent' prefabricated homes named after their creator, renowned Leeds industrialist Sir Edwin Airey (1878-1955). A pair could be erected by unskilled workers in under two weeks – capturing public imagination during a post-war housing crisis.