Bridport Cohousing has launched its fundraising campaign to raise money for its common house.

The community share offer is aiming to raise £732,000 - with a minimum raise of £136,000 - and will help fund the completion of the development by constructing a common house amongst its neighbourhood of 53 affordable homes by Bridport Community Hospital.

The community share offer has been launched via ethical investment platform, Ethex, and has already raised £48,500.

It will provide a hub for the community with a laundry room, dining room, kitchen for shared meals and a space that can be hired out to the public for workshops and classes, as well as enjoyed by residents.

The offer will also pay for two guest rooms to provide short time accommodation for visiting friends and relatives and pay back some outstanding loans that enabled members to buy the phase 2 land back in 2018.

A member of Bridport Cohousing explains that the common house is an integral part of the design of the cohousing neighbourhood, providing a social hub.

They said: "Many cohousing groups, including Bridport Cohousing, find themselves in the position of having to find a creative solution to paying for this vital building because it is not eligible, like the residential houses, for any grants. This is why we are reaching out to the community for their support.

"This is an exciting opportunity for supporters of the project to invest their money in a community-led project which will benefit the wider community as well as receive a good financial return, targeted at four per cent pa."

The common house will be available for hire by outside groups, offering a hall suitable for large meetings, workshops, classes and performances. The hall will also be used for social gatherings as a dining room for shared meals cooked in the catering-size kitchen.

Bridport Cohousing has been awarded the Community Shares Standard Mark which ensures that investors are presented with all the facts they need to make an informed decision.

Lisa Ashford, CEO at Ethex, said: "Affordable housing is a significant issue for communities across the UK, therefore it's great to be supporting Bridport.

"People can make a tangible difference with their investments to improve communities and tackle climate change and make a financial return."

Twelve years ago, a group of local people wanting to provide the opportunity for a more sustainable life came together to design a cohousing neighbourhood in Bridport.

Building work is well underway for the neighbourhood, called 'Hazelmead', and is expected to be completed by summer 2022. The homes will all have solar panels and will be heated using the electricity generated by the solar panels and air source heat pump.

Homes England provided a grant toward the cost of the build and Dorset Council provided a grant towards the land purchase. CAF Venturesome and Power for Change also provided revenue grants for predevelopment costs.

Bridport Cohousing has 56 members - and 25 children - of all ages and backgrounds and many different cultures and are still actively recruiting new members who want to live at Hazelmead.

George, a member of Bridport Cohousing Community Land Trust, said: "We were drawn to the project as a place where we could find an affordable and ecologically sustainable home in the town where we work and want to raise our children.

"We have found a shared vision of a way of organising a community and the group has given us reciprocal support and laughter and a sense of connectedness."

To find out more about Bridport Cohousing and the community share fund, visit bridportcohousing.org.uk

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