Cottenham is a large village on the edge of The Fens just north of Cambridge in East Anglia, UK. Cottenham CLT Limited is a Community Benefit Society which aims to provide locally affordable housing in perpetuity for people with a connection to the parish of Cottenham such as those with family ties with the village or people on lower incomes who wish to live in the community in which they work but cannot currently afford to. It is a not-for-profit organisation; any surplus goes back into the organisation, to be used for new projects for the community.
There are currently seven Cottenham-resident Trustees to guide the Trust, although more are welcome as new skills and experience are required. Cottenham CLT Ltd is a member organisation and all interested parties, whether potential tenants, land-owners or supporters are invited to join (cost £1). An application form can be downloaded from here. Alternatively contact chair@cottenhamclt.org.uk for more information.
A number of landowners have put forward potential sites for consideration to build these homes on. The criteria we have set are:
• near or immediately adjacent to Cottenham’s development framework; and
• within easy walking distance of the village centre or a well-served (bi-directional service to Cambridge) bus stop.
Cottenham CLT is able to develop on Rural Exception Sites so such sites will be considered along with sites within the framework where the landowner is prepared to take a lower profit in order to give something back to the village.
The assessment process is continuing and a public meeting will be held soon to update Cottenham residents on progress.
For more information on Community Land Trusts see EC Community Housing’s website.