Community interest

Members of a co-housing scheme in Lancaster are forging a new way of living.

- Louise Bryning

Many people dream of the days when everyone knew their neighbour and children could play safely in the street. The residents of the awardwinning Forge Bank in Halton are living that dream.

Set by the River Lune, Forge Bank is one of the country’s few co-housing schemes and it’s home to around 65 adults and 15 children. And many of those who founded Lancaster Co-Housing and first moved in to Forge Bank nearly eight years ago are still there. Among them are Chris Coates and his partner, Kate Stamp.

‘We had lived in a small housing co-operative before just outside Padiham and when we moved to Lancaster we were aware of co-housing as an international movement,’ says Chris. ‘But it took a long time to get going in this country compared to other places.’

Currently, there’s about 12 co-housing developments in the UK, mostly in the south, with a further 40 groups looking for sites.

Co-housing has the advantages of home ownership with the benefits of shared common facilities and the neighbourhoods are organised, planned and managed by the residents.

‘The community we’d belonged to was quite small and we wanted something on a larger scale more like a village,’ said Kate.

‘Everyone has a view of what a community has to be. Some have high expectations and there’s much more genuine care and help available here than if you live in a street,’ Chris adds.