community led housing london

Cohousing

London Older Lesbian Cohousing

LOLC are working on a mutually supportive mixed-tenure cohousing project in north-east London, future proofing the homes for their changing needs. Stonewall’s ‘Building Safe Choices’ report found older LGBT people are more likely to be single, live alone and rely on external services due to lack of informal support. The culture of retirement and sheltered homes can be isolating and LOLC intend to create an inclusive and safe space, contributing to innovative approaches to ageing.

The group are working in partnership with a large Housing Association to build around 20 units of which 25-30% will be affordably rented, with the remainder available under the Older People’s Shared Ownership scheme or bought outright.

The co-founders met to research and develop the idea before holding their first public meeting in April 2016. There are currently 19 members, who pay a £10 monthly contribution for travel, printing and room hire costs. LOLC are a Company Limited by Guarantee in which all full members are directors with voting rights. New members go through a joining process before becoming a full member. Decisions are made by consensus and the roles of Chair and Secretary are rotated, while the Treasurer is a fixed role.

How we’re helping
LOLC attended our launch event in 2017 where they met housing associations, social investors and architects. They worked with our associate adviser Maria Brenton to engage potential partners and developed a positive relationship with L&Q around a site in Waltham Forest. We have since supported their dialogues with L&Q as landowner and enabling developer, and Womens Pioneer HA as landlord of the affordable homes.

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Arcadia Cohousing

Arcadia are looking to build affordable, inter-generational housing in East London. As a group, they met through church, and have visited other community led housing projects and attended various workshops to establish their vision and values.

They hope to have shared spaces such as a kitchen and garden where residents can socialise, in addition to their own personal living space. They are looking to incorporate provision for the elderly and/or disabled in their scheme, and work on bringing the wider community in, living out the Christian principle “love your neighbour as yourself”.

They are looking to build 5-10 submarket leasehold homes. It is anticipated individual leases will have a resale price covenant imposed through a sec 106, to protect any affordability in the homes in perpetuity

How we’re helping
We have supported Arcadia to incorporate as a Community Interest Company, think through their objects and open a bank account. Households will be directors of the company working with participatory decision making. We also helped them commission financial modelling, and prepare proposals to redevelop a church site in Tower Hamlets.

 
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The Drive Expansion

The Drive Housing Co-operative is an 11-bedroom intentional community offering a sustainable, collectively-run way of life.

They have plans to build a new 8 bedroom building on their site, and refurbish the existing building with environmental improvements.

How we’re helping
We provided advice on becoming an RP and applying for GLA revenue funding.

 
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Squeezed London

Squeezed London are a diverse group of “squeezed middle” Tower Hamlets residents, who came together to build their own affordable homes, after attending LB Tower Hamlets Self Build Forum, a regular meeting organised by the local authority for people on their self build register.

How we’re helping
Squeezed London have been working with our associate advisers to establish ways of working as a group and put together their business case. We helped to clarify their organisational structure, and introduced them to a Housing Association interested in offering small sites for CLH whilst securing close to market value. We supported the group’s due diligence and offer for the site, although this was ultimately not close enough to what the landowner was seeking.
The group subsequently prepared proposals for the Lark Row site through Tower Hamlets’ affordable self build programme, and were selected as preferred bidder. We are currently supporting them in various aspects of the development process.

 

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Older Women’s
Co-Housing

Older Women’s Co-Housing are a group of women over fifty who are the first senior co-housing community in the UK. Hanover Housing Association forward funded the scheme and OWCH moved in to ‘New Ground’ in 2016.

Number of homes 25 homes (8 for rent from a HA)
Location High Barnet
Project Stage Built 2016
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How they formed
OWCH came together as a group of women over fifty in 2003 to have friendly, helpful neighbours as they got older, as an alternative to living alone. Before moving in, the group met once a month for a shared meal, went on trips and ran workshops to prepare for living alongside one another. They are a fully mutual company, who manage their community through regular group meetings and a small elected management committee. Small service teams take care of the building, garden and outward-facing activities like membership and communications. Non-resident members join the group for events and activities, so vacancies can be filled as they arise.

Site
As OWCH wished to include women who lack equity and therefore need a rent they can afford, the group looked at partnering with housing associations. After some time searching, they convinced Hanover Housing Association to employ a site finder who sourced a number of sites and the group chose a school site for sale on the private market. The Hanover bought the site and forward-funded the development scheme.

Finance
Although the Housing Association financed site acquisition and construction, the prospective buyers paid 10% deposits. This helped de-risk the project for Hanover as all homes were presold or pre-let before construction started. Future tenants were also required to make a non-refundable ‘commitment payment’ to OWCH which was graduated by tenure, but substantial enough for individuals to consider carefully their allegiance to the project. On completion, Hanover sold 17 homes to OWCH buyers and 8 to Housing for Women, a small housing association, to act as landlord for the socially rented units. Housing for Women financed this with private charitable grants, giving them greater flexibility to allocate to OWCH members.

Design and Construction
The 2-3 bed flats are clustered around a walled garden and all have their own patio or balcony. There is a communal meeting room with kitchen and dining areas and residents share a laundry, allotment and guest room. Hanover hired Pollard Thomas Edwards to design the scheme and worked in participation with OWCH. The group also had representation on the project and site teams.

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