A community land trust (CLT) is a way in which a local community can come together and form a trust as a way of owning an asset for the benefit of their community. They’re a vital way for communities to meet the specific needs of their area.
CLT’s generally come forward in rural areas. They can, and do, come forward in urban areas too, but they are much more popular in rural areas. And that’s because the local community have a really strong identified housing need and those needs are often not being met by usual development.
Affordability is much more acute in rural areas where house prices are not keeping pace with local wages. And of course, people want to stay where they have their family networks, but having access to their own home in these remote areas is often really difficult.
Developments don't come forward in rural communities as often as in urban areas. And so we see a real shortage of land and a shortage of infrastructure. Often developments that do come forward might be for larger houses on the open market, not necessarily for smaller affordable housing schemes. But by working in partnership with CLTs and housing associations, you'll be specifically working for the needs of those local communities.
Abri were approached by the Broadwindsor Parish who had identified a specific housing need in their community. Broadwindsor Parish is a rural community consisting of a number of small villages and hamlets located in west Dorset. This rural community is facing rapidly rising property prices that makes homes out of reach for many of the local working residents. There’s a large percentage of the community who have moved into the area to retire, meaning properties affordable to young people are becoming increasingly unavailable. In addition, properties are being taken off the market to become holiday lets – worsening the housing crisis in rural communities significantly. The community needed truly affordable homes for sale and rent.
So, Abri and Broadwindsor Parish began working together, holding many public consultations to help shape the design of the scheme. They were very clear - they wanted the scheme to meet rented need in the village. A farmer brought forward a piece of land that he was willing to sell to the trust, which Abri could then bring forward as a development of 15 rented homes.
Because the development is a Community Land Trust, it is possible to stipulate that the homes are designated for local people who have a connection to the area, in perpetuity. This means the homes will always be available for affordable rent to local people and will not be affected by Right to Buy. They will provide housing for people who wish to live in the village they grew up in. The mix of residents will ensure village life thrives into the future, contributes to the local economy and avoids facing an aging population.
Community Land Trusts can have a really positive impact on how much planning support a proposed development will get. This is because the community is at the heart of the design of the homes and they also have a future long lasting sort of input into the scheme. Therefore, you don't tend to come up against the same sort of planning opposition as you'll often get if it was developer-led development. The homes are nearly ready for people to move in. It’s been a lot of work, but also really rewarding.
Rural communities face unique and difficult challenges. Building more affordable homes is crucial for rural communities – to tackle rising homelessness, for people who want to stay in their local area, and to enhance the quality of housing available to residents. There are a lot of barriers in place, but if we want to tackle this crisis, we need to think differently and work in partnership with local communities to deliver the homes and services they really need.