Co-operative ownership for
affordable, permanent sites for
Gypsies and Travellers
Paul Sander-Jackson
November 2012
What is this addressing
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Long term legal provision of appropriate sites
Control of their site by residents
Low cost provision involving self build
Efficient use of scarce financial resources
The components
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A dedicated Community Land Trust
Groups registered as co-operatives
A revolving loan fund
Lease and site occupancy agreements
Loan agreements
• What is a CLT?
• The full name is ‘Community Land Trust’
• Mainly used for affordable housing
• There is a legal definition. This says that the
CLT must
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Be owned by its community
Controlled by its community
Not have been set up to profit members
Is permanent
Umbrella Community Land Trust
Owns freehold or head lease on land
Site Co-operative A
Site Co-operative B
Holds long lease from CLT
Holds long lease from CLT
Rents pitches to its members
Rents pitches to its members
How the money moves each month
Lender
£
Co-op
CLT
The CLT will eventually hold more than one site
‘in trust’. The CLT will be a source of stability for
Co-ops that will have changing membership. The
people running the CLT will be representatives of
the Co-ops and others (such as Local Authority
representatives) who can help with the larger
aims of the Co-ops.
CLT
Co-op
site
Co-op
site
Co-op
site
Co-op
site
Practical reasons to be a Co-op
• It creates a legal body which can• Open a bank account
• Own assets beyond the timescale of
individual member’s requirements
• Employ/hire people
• Buy insurance
• Enables others to do business with the Coop, not one person
Where we are at in pilot project
• Somerset G and T Community Land Trust up
and running
• First group registered as a co-op
• £100k available from Mendip DC for loan
fund
• Details of lease and loan agreements being
finalised
• First land purchase hopefully soon