Intrigued by a group called "London YIMBY" - "yes, in my back yard", we asked them to write a little about their organisation and what they're trying to achieve. You can read more on their website.  And if you have any thoughts, please comment below. London YIMBY is a campaign to make homes more affordable and secure across the UK by getting more attractive housing built with the support of local people. The housing crisis is the biggest cause of inequality and lost opportunities. Shockingly, it's also caused more damage to UK GDP than anything since the Black Death of 1348-49. (We explain more on our website: londonyimby.org) The great news is that there are many ways to get local residents' support to build more homes and make areas more liveable and more beautiful. It's all about how you ask the question. We spend much of our time listening to what people want. Half of the homes in London are in buildings of only one or two floors. There are plenty of currently low-rise areas where residents are happy to see more building if it happens in a way they like. For example, if you ask people whether they'd like their whole street to get permission to extend upwards or sideways, with a design code of their choice, very often the answer is yes. There's no reason why that should be so hard in practice, especially near transport hubs. Where it doesn't make sense, the street won't do it. That can mean many extra flats or even houses. There are also ways to get local consensus to build attractive housing on greenfield sites, where that makes sense for the local community, to make homes more affordable. This country used to be so much better at building homes. Sadly, various problems have nearly frozen the natural, graceful growth that went on for thousands of years. We'll soon be launching the best reform ideas we have seen so far, which all involve enhancing the current system to make everyone's lives better – tenants, homeowners and planners. We can build many more homes while improving spaces and making nearly everyone happier. Let's be the best in the world at building beautiful places again. You can find out more and sign up for updates or get more involved at www.londonyimby.org – and please join us Twitter: @LondonYIMBY – we'd love to hear your views!