The Consumption Sector Debate and Housing Mobility

Abstract

This paper argues that in order to assess whether consumption sectors form meaningful social collectivities it is essential to consider patterns of housing mobility. Just as Goldthorpe has argued that a process of `class formation' occurs when individuals tend to belong to the same class as their parents, so we argue that it is important to examine whether there is a process of `tenure formation' where individuals have the same tenure as their parents. Only in this case is it likely that tenure forms a basis for social identity and collective action. We argue that existing studies on housing mobility fail to systematically address this issue. We draw on survey research on council tenants in Guildford, Surrey to describe patterns of housing mobility. We show that there are high rates of housing mobility which suggests that housing tenure is not an axis of social closure. We therefore conclude that, at least in this area of the South East, a consideration of housing mobility casts considerable doubts on the view that consumption sector cleavages are becoming more significant in social and political life.