Introduction
This essay aims to identify the roles and interactions of different actors in the development of two different urban areas: the Florence Park estate in Cowley, Oxford and the Byker estate in Newcastle. The Florence Park estate is a housing development in Cowley. The area developed rapidly in the 20's and 30's with the arrival of the Morris Motors car works. The Byker estate in Newcastle is a planned social housing development built in the 70's as part of a slum clearance project. This essay will examine each example in turn and then draw conclusions about the varying importance of different actors in each area. 
Cowley, East Oxford
Up until the 1920s Cowley was a predominantly rural area with only a few small clustered settlements. Morris motor car works was established in the area in 1913 and the Pressed Steel Co. followed. There was a demand for housing close to the factories for the workers, many of whom had migrated to the area. The area developed rapidly from rural to urban. The housing built still remains in Cowley today, although some of the houses have been extended and there are areas of infill. Private housebuilders bought areas of land and built large estate of houses speculatively. Florence Park was built in 1934 by N. Moss and Son. The houses were all built to a standard design and architects were not used. They were developed for profit and were either sold or let. Estate agents were used to sell properties and they were also advertised in papers and magazines. There was no formal planning system at this time although the housing had to adhere to certain bylaws. The council had a role in checking and approving plans before development (the Housing Subcommittee.) Tenants had little power and conflicts arose as they united to protest at the high rents and poor design/quality of the houses. They felt that they had been built as cheaply as possible and were 'so badly built they cannot be said even to conform with the bylaws.'( Florence Park Tenants Committee, n.d. ) They also felt that the council had done little to protect their interests, especially as the builder of Florence Park, F.E. Moss, was also a city councillor. Developers seem to have the most power and were setting the agenda. Byker estate, NewcastleThis area of Newcastle was originally a working-class area of high density back-to-back Victorian terraces. Many of these were in poor condition and lacked one or more basic household amenities. In the 1960s Newcastle City Council took the decision to redevelop it. 80% of the residents wanted to stay in Byker and in 1968 the Conservatives won one of the council seats after campaigning on the slogan 'Byker for Byker people.' The council decided to clear the slums but to try to keep the community. Ralph Erskine, an architect, was appointed by the Housing Committee as the master planner and consultant for the redevelopment. The local authority owned the land, financed the development and was responsible for approving the plans, and giving planning permission. Erskine opened up an office in an old shop in the middle of the redevelopment area, and there was an 'open house' policy that encouraged local people to drop in and talk to the architects and get involved with the design team. At the time there were plans for a motorway bypass to run through the area. Part of the design solution to screen the rest of the site from this was the Byker Wall: This wall is a block of flats/maisonettes which winds around the north of the estate. Within the wall, the development consists of low rise housing, comprising of a mixture of terraces and maisonettes for 2 to 6 people. There is a great mix in textures, styles, scales and colour of the housing: Green spaces and landscaping were included in the redevelopment and communal 'hobby rooms' were provided for each group of residents. The architects had constant feedback from tenants and many changes were made to the design and building standards in response to the tenant's views. The scheme has been heralded as the first example of 'community architecture.' The estate still remains, although in recent years some social problems have developed, partly due to poor maintenance of the site. The estate was grade II listed in 2003 The majority view seems to be that the Byker development was 'highly successful' and 'set new standards for local authority housing.'(Grundy, 1992) However due to the fact that the new housing was at a lower density than the slums not all of the community could be rehoused in the same area. The main actors in this development were the architect, the residents and the local authority. 
Conclusion
The Byker estate and Florence Park estate were developed at different times and in very different ways. The Florence Park estate was developed on greenfield land, speculatively, by private developers for profit. The Byker estate was planned redevelopment of an area. The council had several roles as it was the landowner and client for the project and the development was for public housing. The council also had a role as the planning authority. When Florence Park was being developed there was not yet such a formal planning system although there were regulations that should have been adhered to. As the developer was also a councillor, there was a conflict of interest. Private developers instigated the development of Florence Park and had a lot of power. Tenants had no influence whereas at Byker the tenant's views were much more influential. The Byker estate was designed by an architect, and was thought to be very innovative. Housing was individually designed with 300 different types of dwelling which were of good quality. Florence Park did not use an architect, housing was uniform, and there were many complaints about the standards of its design. Tenants were much more satisfied with the housing at Byker. These two examples demonstrate that urban areas are shaped by a combination of influences and interactions between different actors, who have varying degrees of power in the development process. These different influences are apparent in the final form of the built environment. 