Three members of the UK Cohousing Network attended the US Cohousing National Conference in Boston in June and were astounded by the scale and complexity of the cohousing scene in America. Key themes of the conference included the role of developers, senior cohousing and environmental design.

The Times recently had a great piece about cohousing, after a visit to the Community Project. Well worth a read.

It also talks about getting started, and mentions that:

A new developing group in Berkshire is just getting off the ground: watch the newswire for the date of the first meeting.

If you want to find out more, or would be interested in helping to organise this first meeting, see their group page for more details.

Thundercliffe Grange: first floor flat for sale -

• Approached by central staircase and comprising 2 bedrooms, sitting room, kitchen/diner, bathroom/toilet, entrance hallway.
• All main rooms are 12' high, sitting room and master bedroom are 20'x20'.
• Click here for more information about Thundercliffe Grange. Exterior of the flat can be seen on illustration on this website entry - middle range of windows , end to end of the building.
• Contract vendor - Chri...@virgin.net (click on the dots before the @ to get the full e-mail.)
• or by phone - 0114 2452034
• Flat valued at £250,000.

Next meeting
We are having a picnic on the beach. 1-3pm Sunday 17 August on the beach by Maroccos cafe on Hove seafront (Kings Eslanade; see map here).

Co-Housing Bristol (Co-HB) are a group of local people who are working together to build a sustainable community of eco-homes in Bristol. Co-HB was registered as a co-operative (Company Ltd by Guarantee) in 2001.

Aims: to build an intentional neighbourhood designed to be socially, environmentally and financially sustainable. The development will be established within a 5-mile radius of Bristol city-centre, offering mixed tenure to house all our members: owner-occupancy, shared equity and rented accommodation.

The Housing Corporation's current grant programme that frames any consideration of grant funding towards housing development during the 2008-11 period is detailed within their publication "National Affordable Housing Programme 2008-11 - Prospectus"

There has been some debate on whether or not cohousing can be described as 'affordable housing'. As this phrase has a particular technical meaning in the UK, it may be useful to explore it and consider whether or not cohousing fits this category – or if there are alternative ways in which cohousing might be made accessible to people on low incomes.

Welcome to the first Leeds Ecovillage Newsletter.

We aim to build a sustainable mixed community in the heart of Leeds, and possibly in south Leeds. The homes will be permanently affordable and built to the highest ecological design standards. We will use the well established model of co-housing and in our first phase we aim to build about 20 homes, housing 50 people. We are using this model because of the social and environmental benefits that come from sharing, particularly in improving quality of life, reducing consumption of scarce resources, and avoiding harm to the environment.

What sets us apart from some other 'eco' projects (like eco-towns) is that we're small scale and committed to democratic and cooperative practices. It will be founded on a Community Land Trust (CLT) and a Mutual Home Ownership Scheme (MHOS) (see below), so that the homes we create will stay affordable forever. We plan to engage with our host neighbourhood in diverse ways.

We are currently finalising our business plan, talking to Leeds City Council about land, setting up a co-operative company to manage the project, and will have a next wave of membership in a few months.

So what is a CLT and a MHOS?

A CLT (Community Land Trust) is a mechanism for the democratic ownership of land by the local community. Land is taken out of the market so that the impact of land appreciation is removed, enabling long-term affordable and sustainable local development. The value of the land is captured in perpetuity, underpinning the sustainable development of a defined locality or community.

A MHOS is registered as a co-operative controlled by its members who are the residents and live in the homes it provides. Each member has a lease which gives them the right to democratically control the housing community they live in. Members pay an equity stake to the co-operative and retain equity in the scheme.

What's coming up?

Over the coming months we will be organizing workshops open to all which will help us develop our ideas. Future plans include workshops on building with straw, hemp and lime and visits to other projects! Check out the website for more information.

Leeds Eco-village monthly open meetings are held at 7pm at the Common Place in Leeds city centre. The full list of upcoming meetings are at the top of our website.

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• For information on membership please e-mail us.
• Go to our website for more news and information.