The ‘Responsible’ Tenant and the Problem of Apathy

In the last decade, the UK New Labour government has emphasised tenant participation in housing policy. Consequently, those individuals who decide to opt out of participation processes have been problematised as ʹapathetic, and identified as needing to be ʹempoweredʹ through professional interventions. Drawing on research about community ownership in Glasgow, this paper argues that tenantsʹ reasons for not getting involved are more than simply lack of interest. Tenants articulated an instrumental approach to participation, and rejected the conflation of tenant participation with tenant management. Practical barriers also obstructed their latent motivation.