The Modular Solution to Homelessness

The risk of homelessness is increasing and is set to rise. Whilst rough sleeping is the most visible form of homelessness, there are many circumstances where there is a need for support to have shelter and a place to call home.

Events both natural and man-made can have an affect housing. From the emergency - climate disaster, fire, flooding, conflict; or the planned - temporary work places, residential decant; temporary accommodation is often required to fill a need.

The form of temporary accommodation can vary hugely, from the self-made tent to the large volumetric cabin. Modular construction offers a great way to provide decent accommodation, which can be erected quickly. With repetition comes economies of scale. The Bygo system offers a way to build temporary (or permanent) homes quickly and economically. The small format of the modules allows difficult access issues to be overcome, enabling them be installed in areas that would be impossible for conventional volumetric modular buildings.

For every building ordered we provide an option to round-up to level-up. One of our 3 bedroom terraced houses requires 284 external modules. As a customer if you round-up to 290 modules those extra 6 modules go towards a shelter home for the homeless.

The image opposite illustrates a simple 2x2 shelter. It is formed from 36 modules, 16 external cladding modules and 14 internal finishing modules (excluding furniture). That means that with 11 donations of 6 modules a new home can be created. The result is a weather-proof compact home that is low-cost, low maintenance, self-sufficient, and solar powered. A place to:

• Sleep

• Charge a phone

• Have a wash

• A postal address

We hope that land owners can find locations that may have been overlooked or that are set aside for future development that could be used. When installed in a small cluster or street they could be linked with ablution blocks or arranged around shared space to create a small community. Because the buildings are modular they could in the future be dismantled and re-erected elsewhere.