Groups directory

North London Sustainable Housing Partnership Ltd (NLSHP)

admin — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:10:52 +0100

North London Sustainable Housing Partnership Ltd (NLSHP)

We are looking at future use of St Luke's Woodside Hospital.

Our community meeting on 13th September was a big success. Over fifty people crowded into the Friends’ Meeting House to hear about our vision for the St Lukes Site. We held a lively session in which members of the community were able to give their own inputs into our plans, especially regarding community use for the site.

The following ideas came up (with the number of stars indicating the level of support for each particular idea).

WALES: Eco-community in SW Wales

admin — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 16:35:10 +0000

We are three households looking to buy a farm/smallholding/land with others in SW Wales (Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthanshire). We would like to establish an Eco-community that embraces deep respect for each other and the land. We envisage each household having their own dwelling, with the majority of the land being worked communally to grow food with provision for individual plots, raising animals, running sustainable businesses, and managing our own water and woodland.

Anam Cara West Wales

admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 09:49:31 +0000

Anam Cara West Wales

Our greatest desire is to purchase enough land to serve the community we envisage. The minimum acreage we require is 20 acres preferably with woodland.

Ideally the land would be situated at the end of small lane/road, which is close to a like minded hamlet or village whilst not being within half a mile of main road.

Bowden House Community, Devon

admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 10:30:01 +0000

Bowden House Community, Totnes, Devon

We are a group of families and individuals aspiring to compassionate and eco-mindful living, some of us balancing our time here with creating livelihoods elsewhere. We are developing conscious and authentic community within a culture of singing, meditating, working, eating, gardening, celebrating and learning together, as well as hosting events for the wider community.
Some things that inspire us:
· Developing our resonance with each other and our surroundings.
· Singing together.

Bridport Cohousing Community

admin — Sat, 02 May 2009 13:51:51 +0100

Bridport Cohousing Community

Canon Frome Court

admin — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 12:17:49 +0000

Canon Frome Court is home to the Windflower Housing Association. The main house and stable block contain 18 leasehold self-contained living spaces of varying sizes, housing some 28 adults (age 31-72) and 19 children (0- at uni).

Cardiff - Cohousing Cymru

admin — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 11:06:29 +0100

Our vision is to create, within the next 3 years, a housing-based community in Cardiff that will encourage social interaction and mutual support whilst reducing our carbon footprint. The development will include self-contained and accessible homes along with a shared co-house and other facilities for communal use (laundry, tool and bike shed; external space for food-growing and leisure; car pool etc).

Cohousing Berkshire

admin — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 08:51:16 +0100

Cohousing Berkshire has been in existence for about two years. We have been establishing our vision for cohousing, have developed a good core group, and are networking with authorities and other groups in the area to further our cause. We are now setting up a company, which will be called Kennet And Thames CoHousing (or KATCH), to take forward a project, while Cohousing Berkshire will continue as an information base to sporn future groups."

Cohousing Bristol

admin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 15:42:44 +0000

Co-Housing Bristol welcomes prospective members seeking to purchase a home in our planned sustainable and cooperative community of 36 homes in central Bristol. Co-Housing Bristol is a co-operative that has come together to create a mutually supportive, socially inclusive neighbourhood in Bristol.

We will build a strong community, which balances the benefits of group living with the needs of families and individuals, providing a secure basis to pursue rewarding and fulfilling lives. Join us now as we build and develop an intentional neighbourhood which is Socially, Environmentally and Financially Sustainable.

Co-Housing Bristol was launched at an open meeting in June 2001. Subsequent meetings allowed the first members to explore the lessons from existing communities, to develop their vision of the project and identify the principles and aims of Co-Housing Bristol. Since then, the group has grown and developed as a community, recruiting new members, researching sites, architecture and techniques. We have established dialogue with a range of professionals and organisations, developing a network of contacts and potential partners, and identifying many of the problems and opportunities in building a sustainable community.

Please see our website for more details or
contact us via this link.

Community Project

admin — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 23:17:01 +0000

The Community Project is a group of people who have jointly purchased a site on the edge of the small village of Laughton in East Sussex. There are 3 large buildings that have been converted into 16 family houses and 4 new houses have also been built. The 23 acres of land and a small number of other buildings on the site provide communal facilities for the group.
Whilst maintaining the privacy of individual homes, the aim of the group is to live co-operatively, jointly managing the land and communal facilities, informally sharing skills and support and generally enjoying each other's company.

There is no one specific ideology which defines the group, but we are all keen on a spirit of community. We do not want an institutionalised feel, but we do want to be more than simply a housing estate. We want to live next door to people we know and trust. Read more about the Community Project, or contact us, via the links below.

For those interested in in finding out more about the community, as well as media enquiries, please use the Community Project contact form above.

For more information on the Community project, click here.
Or, to download a case study on the CP, right click here

Courtyards Community

admin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 14:45:58 +0000

The Courtyards Community comprises 5 units within a converted school on the outskirts of Bradford on Avon. Each unit is self-contained. We share the use of 8 acres of land and a wonderful communal hall. Other shared facilities include a tennis court, swimming pool and orchard. This year, all types of fruit were particularly in abundance.

Most residents work off-site (at least for some of the time), but we get together for a full day's work once a month. Jobs we've taken on over the last few months have been painting, turf-laying, tree-planting, garden-building, rock-shifting, grass-cutting, sewage-composting, tree-cutting and some other building and development projects. We always end up sharing a meal together. We've recently instigated a formal method of accounting for the different availability of each resident for additional communal work.

Communal facilities are used regularly by groups which include people from outside the community. Examples have been the monthly dance: 'The Wave', a book club, meetings of the Woodcraft Folk, WWOOF days, camping, private parties and weddings.

In 2005, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the original conversion of Frankleigh House into living units. This project subsequently became "The Courtyards Community" and "Frankleigh Co-Flats".

Earth Heart Housing Co-operative

admin — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 15:30:55 +0100

Earth Heart Housing Co-operative is in rural Derbyshire 5 miles outside
Ashbourne.

We have 8 residential units, from 2 to 4 bedrooms each, with the
residents owning 999 year leases with the co-operative owning the
free-hold. We own 20 acres of rolling land, some organically grazed
pasture, some woodland, an orchard, all running down to the brook which
becomes the river that flows through Ashbourne.

We are 12 adults and 12 children, some of whom are away at University.

We have a communal wood-chip boiler, a reed-bed for sewage, and a large

Eco Chateau

admin — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:12:32 +0000

Eco Chateau
A new co-housing and eco holiday project based in a 17th century chateau in France.

New Plans (2011) for Eco Chateau

Following a great deal of research and discussion with many people who would like to join, I am now proposing a slightly different scheme for the co-housing as described below.

Eco-cohousing Brighton

admin — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 14:54:40 +0000

We want to set up a vegan / vegetarian eco-cohousing community in Brighton and are looking for people to join us to make it happen.

When we have the right people, the group will buy a large residential or commercial building or buildings with some land, which we would convert into separate living areas with shared indoor and outdoor spaces. Alternatively we could buy a group of houses together.

Enlinca Cambridge

admin — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 13:02:39 +0000

We are a group of people living in or near Cambridge who are exploring options and possibilities of forming a Cohousing community. We have been meeting since mid-2000 during which time we have got to know one another and clarified our ideas on cohousing. We have also visited a number of existing communities elsewhere in the UK which has helped give shape to our vision.

Our wish is to live as sustainably as we can, with a strong sense of community and mutual support, ensuring individual privacy and need for space while sharing some communal facilities.

Frankleigh co-flats, near Bradford on Avon

admin — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 12:34:45 +0000

Frankleigh CoFlats consists of 6 self contained flats converted from a grade 2 listed Victorian Mansion. Residents have their own self contained flats. They share in the maintenance and caring of the buildings and land. The communal kitchen, grand lobby and grounds are used for communal meals, parties and social gatherings. Decisions are made by consensus or rarely by majority if deadlocked.

Frome Cohousing Group

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 09:29:18 +0000

FROME COHOUSING GROUP
Winter Newsletter
December 6th, 2011
SUMMARY OF THE AGM OF FROME COHOUSING CIC
30TH OCTOBER 2011

Greetings co-housers!

Twenty-three people attended the first AGM of the Frome Cohousing CIC and a very positive gathering it was to.
The CIC is a Community Interest Company, not for profit, where each member has a vote. Attendees included CIC members, as well as non-members who have shown an interest in Frome cohousing. The meeting was chaired by Tim Cutting, one of the three CIC directors.

Glasgow/Stirling - new group

admin — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 13:46:28 +0100

We hope to develop a cohousing project for older Quakers and those in sympathy with Quaker beliefs. The project will have an alternate way of producing electricity, be well insulated, be near a train station, have a communal kitchen and dining area.

We will be owner/occupiers so the project will have to cover the costs from those involved in the project.

We will soon have a web site up for further information. The site will be in either the Greater Glasgow area or in the Stirling area.

Hackney Cohousing Project

admin — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 13:58:36 +0000

The Hackney Cohousing Project started as a group of four households who came together with the intention of designing, building and living in a cohousing development. We love living in Hackney, (East London) and want to avoid the common pattern of moving out in search of cheaper housing. We have chosen instead to create a friendly, sustainable and affordable housing development right here in London.

Herefordshire - Mandorla Cohousing

admin — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 13:08:38 +0100

Greetings
Mandorla Cohousing is a group set up to develop ecologically and socially
sustainable cohousing in Herefordshire. We have spent a year developing our
vision (see a brief summary below), and now want to find people who might
be interested in joining us. If that could be you, we’d love to hear
from you.

Do You Share Our Vision?
The founding vision for Mandorla Co-housing is to contribute to the
evolution of a way of living that is abundant, ethical, vibrant and
sustainable.

We are passionate about:
• creating a beautiful place to live,

High Peak & Welsh Border - Rowanberry Cohousing

admin — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 14:28:51 +0000

High Peak/Welsh Border - Rowanberry Cohousing

Please link to our blog Rowanberry Cohousing for more information

Interested? Contact Matthew Simon or Sally Mitchell
matt...@gmail.com 0161 449 9646

Lancaster Cohousing

admin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 14:53:21 +0000

Lancaster Cohousing is moving on apace
Update - October 2010: The diggers are in! Groups of willing volunteers from our members and the canoe clubs (who use this stretch of the River Lune) are assisting with land clearance and salvage. We have had a huge shed load of office furniture donated by Lancaster University from a department that was closing down. We now have just 6 housing units left to for sale. These consist of 1 bed flats and 2 bed houses. Plus there is a second phase of 3 bed houses expected soon.

This weekend is our regular brunch Sunday (24.10.2010) with a guided tour of the site and an integration meeting for new members. The brunch at The Whale Tale takes place on the 4th Sunday of every month and is a chance to meet the group and find out about the project. Please see our website for further details.

Lancaster Cohousing; work commencing on site and 6 homes left!

It's a beautiful site with a south facing slope down to the River Lune; a perfect spot to create our exciting eco cohousing development. The project will comprise private homes, community facilities, workshop/office space and shared outdoor space. It will be built on ecological values in partnership with our architects, Ecoarc. Planning permission has been granted and the group are working with Ecoarc on detailed design before building work commences in spring 2011. We hope to move in in spring 2012.

The site is ideal for accessing the amenities (school, shops, pubs etc) of Halton Village and is just 3 miles from Lancaster City Centre which can be easily accessed by a riverside cycle path or bus.

Our group is friendly and intergenerational; we already have ‘community’ and are looking forward to being neighbours. The project is of course great for families; they can benefit from shared childcare, lots of car free space for play and lots of playmates!

Joining
We are welcoming new members; we have just 6 homes left in the project (at 10/10) so be quick! 6 more 3 bedroom homes on the edge of the site may also be available soon.

Please see our website for further details including how to join, details of the 6 remaining homes, events, photos of the site, twitter and facebook details, our videos, and much more…….

If you have questions email i...@lancastercohousing.org.uk (click on the three dots to the left of the @ for full email) or phone one of the contacts given on the website.
.

Lifetime Community Project

admin — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 13:36:44 +0000

We plan to create a cohousing community in West Yorkshire, for people who want a co-operative and self-responsible life style for their later years. Our community will support members to grow older together, to “age in place” safely and enjoyably. The community will include 12 – 20 homes with shared facilities such as a large dining room, recreation areas, laundry, workshops and gardens. There will be a strong emphasis on environmental sustainability.

We want to engage local people’s interest and involvement in the LifeTime project, so that we remain part of the wider community. We will be a model of a supportive and accessible age-in-place community, encouraging other older people to consider such projects for themselves. We shall raise the profile of this kind of housing project with policy makers and service providers.

You can contact us via the contact form link above. See below for more information about the Lifetime Community Project.

LILAC

admin — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 11:04:38 +0100

We are LILAC

LILAC stands for Low Impact Living Affordable Community. We will be a pioneering, carbon neutral, permanently affordable, sustainable mixed urban housing community. We plan to a cohousing community of 20 homes in Leeds. Whilst most British cohousing has been relatively sustainable, socially and ecologically, we also hope to set new standards for affordablilty. Previously we were known as “Leeds eco-village”.

Low Impact Living
Design features, some shared living and individual commitments will ensure we reduce energy and resource use - save money. We aim to use natural building materials, insulations and have grey/black water recycling. Where possible we will harness appropriate renewable technologies as we work towards zero carbon design and energy use.

Affordable
We are a new and unique financial and legal entity called a Mutual Home Ownership Society (MHOS). This involves member residents paying around 35% of their monthly income towards their equity share. On leaving residents get an out-payment only partially linked to the national and local house market fluctuations. The cost of building will be reduced by using the cheap material of straw. Homes will not be quite so big as some necessities will be shared in the cohouse. All of these measure will help make sure that moving to – and living in - LILAC should always be affordable.

Community
The design will foster conviviality and community interaction by using the cohousing concept that mixes private dwelling space and shared facilities. The ‘co-house’ will include communal cooking and eating facilities, meeting space and play area. Other shared facilities will be emerge from an assessment of needs made with the adjacent communities. The design of the project will create a beautiful living space which will maximise as appropriate green spaces, areas for food production and social interaction.

London Countryside Cohousing Group (LoCo)

admin — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 22:47:41 +0000

The London Countryside Cohousing Group ('LoCo') developed greatly during 2010, and 2011 is now (April-May 2011) offering exciting prospects. With membership now doubled to 24, an emerging partnership with Hanover Housing Association, and several promising sites we feel we're getting up to speed.

Normandy

admin — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 19:32:12 +0100

One English and one French family living on an 8 acre site are looking for others to develop a cohousing or cooperative based intentional community.

Please see details

Contact:
Hayley Shaw & Douglas Beal,

Telephone / Fax:
02 31 66 00 17
(From UK: 0033 231 66 00 17)

hayl...@wanadoo.fr

Northeast Group

admin — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 12:26:29 +0000

An Open Invitation

Have you been looking for a ‘Grand Designs’ project, or just the chance to build a better quality of life?

Expressions of interest are currently sought for co-creators for a proposed Community Land Trust and Co-housing project in the north of England, aimed at creating a unique development offering affordable housing, business opportunities, and sustainable lifestyles.

The H4CLT Model

NORTHERN IRELAND

admin — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 14:01:27 +0000

COHOUSING GROUP STARTING IN NORTHERN IRELAND
This project was started by a group of friends in October 2011. We had all
been thinking in our own way of how it could be possible to live in an
environment that would be nurturing and supportive, full of interest with
different people and activities while at the same time ecologically sound
and with moderate running costs. Cohousing seems to offer all of this (and
more) and with nothing available in Northern Ireland we are setting up our
own project.

Norwich Cohousing

admin — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 23:25:24 +0000

Norwich Cohousing is now actively developing plans for our project. Over the past year we have formed a group, got to know each other and discussed our core values. We have drawn up a constitution and set up a bank account. We've had a lot of meals together! We have also loosely defined our objective - a sustainable cohousing community within seven miles of Norwich City Centre.

We are now starting to develop contacts with organisations and professionals, gather information and look for potential sites. We will also be hosting open events and publicising our group locally. New prospective members are always welcome.

We have a website at www.norwichcohousing.org.uk
For more information contact Lucy Hall on 01603 613440
Email i...@norwichcohousing.org.uk (click on the 3 blue dots to get the full email.)

Older Womens Cohousing, London

admin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 16:01:13 +0000

The Older Women’s Cohousing (OWCH) Group in London intends to build a mutually supportive community for women over fifty in High Barnet, North London. They have a site there and this will be developed by the Hanover housing association as part of its senior cohousing initiative. The project is being designed by PTE architects and planning permission is currently being sought. OWCH combines prospective purchasers, shared owners and affordable renters and will work with Housing for Women, a housing association, to manage the rental units. The group meets each month in north London and women interested in the project are encouraged to get in touch via the OWCH website.

Oxford Cohousing

admin — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 17:34:18 +0100

Oxford Cohousing group formed in summer 2010. We wish to live according to the following values:
- In a spirit of inclusivity, mutual support, friendship and cooperation.
- With respect for the environment
- With open and transparent communication and decision making
- Sharing our, time, space and facilities

We are looking for a site in or near Oxford suitable for the following:
- 10 to 30 private homes of varying sizes, costs and tenure
- communal facilities which might include meeting, eating and work space
- homes to meet the needs of an intergenerational group

Perthshire - Senior and Multi-Generational Co-housing Initiative

admin — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 14:30:30 +0000

Senior and Multi-Generational Co-housing Initiative

Culdees at Boreland Farm, Fearnan, Loch Tay, Perthshire in Scotland are pioneering an eco-village where three/four generations will co-exist in self-built eco-houses. We will create work where we live and build a forest school for the children. Green issues are paramount. We aspire to be as self-sufficient and self-reliant as possible.

Postlip Community

admin — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 09:46:59 +0000

We’re a small community of eight families, occupying separate ‘living units’ inside a large Cotswold Manor House. The picture looks as if we're on a main road but we're actually deep inside a secluded valley.

Our bit of the Postlip valley holds a mainly-Jacobean house, a medieval Tithe Barn, and the 12C Chapel of St James, in Gloucestershire. We do lots of things together, from growing organically and maintaining the house and grounds to running public events but we also have private lives.

The best way to visit Postlip is to come and work with us in the garden and estate on one of our monthly working weekends. Postlip events include the annual Cotswold Beer Festival, folk and classical music concerts, story-telling and drama, and our current schedule is here...

We sometimes hire out our beautiful medieval Tithe Barn, and the Great Hall, for weddings, exhibitions, parties and large events.

Prospect Permaculture Community: Co-housing

admin — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 13:52:00 +0100

Prospect Permaculture Community

We are a group of like minded people who are setting up an intentional community based on permaculture principles.

The community will be essentially land based with the aim of producing most of our own food and energy. We will earn our income from a wide variety of activities - as many as possible will take place on-site.

Accommodation will be based on co-housing with dwellings that are largely self contained but sharing many facilities.

Selby, North Yorkshire - ALIVE 50+

admin — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 18:09:18 +0100

ALIVE 50+
(Affordable, low impact, vibrant environment)

Want to live in the peace and quiet of the countryside, but can’t afford the ludicrously high property prices?
Want to be able to look forward to retirement, rather than dread it?
Want to be rid of relentlessly-rising utility bills?
Want to be self-sufficient – enjoy home-grown produce, confident that it’s free from chemicals, antibiotics and growth promoters?

Selkirk Cohousing Group

admin — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 12:14:01 +0100

Selkirk Co-housing initiative has been kicked into action by a terrific site coming onto the market in early April 2011 at a very unexpectedly affordable price. Having potential land first is a somewhat unusual way round for developing a co housing project, but the scarcity of suitable sites has limited our enthusiasm until now. However, there is an embryonic group of interested people who had their first meeting in 3rd week April.

Springdale Gardens Cohousing Group

admin — Wed, 19 May 2010 16:58:16 +0100

Springdale Gardens CoHousing Group
We have submitted our planning application, and hope to receive news from Hackney Council quite soon. As we expected, there are some neighbours who are opposing our scheme. We empathise with them and can understand that any type of change affects us individually so it is usually difficult to accept - but after 2 years of careful consideration, we feel certain that this will be a good thing for the whole in the long term and are actively trying to keep good communication going between us.

Springhill Cohousing

admin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 14:22:38 +0000

Stroud Co-flats

admin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 14:33:50 +0000

CoFlats Stroud is a community made up of 14 private self contained flats. There is a small common house on 2 floors and a shared laundry.

The Common house is for residents and friends to socialise, cook communal meals, organise events, hold residents meetings to run the common aspects of CoFlats or just hang out and have a cup of coffee whilst the laundry is done next door.

Sussex Cohousing (formerly Brighton Cohousing)

admin — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 14:45:25 +0000

SUSSEX COHOUSING (formerly Brighton Cohousing)

In November 2011 this group re-branded as Sussex Cohousing with a new statement of intent and downloadable brochure

Sussex Cohousing is a group of people living in or around Brighton wanting to develop a cohousing community in the Sussex area.

We are looking for around at least an acre of land (more in a rural location) within an hour of Brighton, for approximately 20-30 dwellings.

Aims of the project
• To live in a resilient, supportive,sharing community

Sydenham Cohousing - Featherstone Lodge

admin — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 12:05:09 +0100

Cohousing in Sydenham, London SE23

Open Day Saturday 17th September 2011 2pm-5pm

Sydenham in South East London (its on the new East London Line) will be the location of one of the first cohousing communities within 30 minutes of central London. You are warmly invited to our first open-day. A guided tour of Featherstone Lodge will be followed by a presentation about ‘cohousing’.

Featherstone Lodge

Threshold Centre, Dorset

admin — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 11:43:36 +0000

The Threshold Centre at Cole Street Farm is a unique, pioneering cohousing community and sustainable education centre, which aims to demonstrate a way of life which is more green, more affordable, and more neighbourly.

Thundercliffe Grange

admin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 13:26:18 +0000

Thundercliffe, an eighteenth century mansion house with service wings and stable block, set in 22 acres of mixed park land and woodland on the Sheffield/Rotherham border in South Yorkshire celebrated its 20th anniversary as a co-housing institution in May 2000.

The initial participants, the majority of whom still live at the Grange, were mainly local government officers who, together with friends and family, formed the company "Thundercliffe Grange Ltd." to purchase the Grange, a former residential home for physically and mentally handicapped children, from Sheffield Health Authority and to convert it into self-contained flats together with areas for communal use.

There are twelve flats - some occupied by single people the others by families, in total some two dozen occupants ranging in age from 2 to 65. There is no specific ideology which defines the group and every effort is made to preserve the privacy and autonomy of individuals while sharing the benefits (and the work and expense) of the house and its grounds. The land, apart from the kitchen garden and ornamental gardens adjacent to the house, comprises woodland and park land and is managed in such a way as to enhance the habitat for birds, animals etc.The ground floor of the main building provides communal areas such as workshop, dining room and laundry.

Contact:Tony Wilson
Flat 10,Thundercliffe Grange,
Grange Lane,
Rotherham, S61 2SQ
tel.0114 2452037
wlsn...@tiscali.co.uk

Trelay Farm, Cornwall

admin — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 14:01:09 +0000

Trelay is a co-housing eco-village. Our vision is that it will eventually have about 30 adult residents plus children and visitors. (Currently we have 17 residents, ranging in age from 11 months to 88 years.) We have several empty living spaces which we are letting out as holiday accommodation until new residents join. Contact us if you'd like to come and live here!

Vivarium, Fife

admin — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 20:29:29 +0000

Vivarium is for people who choose to live in a positive, co-operative and responsible manner with family, friends, neighbours and the environment.

Recent research shows that housing options for older people are limited and do not meet the needs of a population who are increasingly active, and who are seeking to retain their full cognitive faculties for as long as possible whilst wishing to enjoy a sense of dignity and self worth. It is against this backdrop that Vivarium was born.

The pilot project will be for older people who recognise the difficulties of living in rural areas. These are people who will choose to live in a co-operative fashion and continue to contribute in a meaningful way to society. Vivarium members hope to remain active and involved in life for as long as possible, not simply to be provided for and be dependent upon health care support mechanisms.

Vivarium membership groups will be self managing and members will be involved in the decision making process throughout.
Vivarium members will have a desire to live in a co-operative manner, sharing resources thus going someway to alleviating problems of food and fuel poverty.
Communal areas are integral to the concept of cohousing, providing areas where residents can meet and feel part of the community.
This concept can be applied inter- generationally and to any "common interest groups".

For more information, please visit our website or contact Hugh Hoffman, Vice Chairman, The Vivarium Trust on 01337-831403. E-mail Hugh via his contact form.

Wild Geese Co-operative

admin — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 15:24:25 +0000

The newly-formed The Wild Geese Cohousing Co-operative Ltd. has been recently registered with the help of Catalyst Collective and is looking for land to buy in Forres for a new-build co-housing scheme (very early days).

Prospective new members, please contact: