Purpose and Outcome

Access to affordable housing in the UK has been an increasingly dire situation in the last half of the decade. Policies introduced to the social housing market like Right to Buy have diminished the supply of affordable housing, and there are very few alternatives that offer affordability as well as security. We believe that the CLT model is an effective solution to this and have embarked on providing support to dozens of communities wishing to make this happen.

With over 37 projects completed or in progress that WCA has supported, our mission was not only to provide technical advice to communities working to accomplish their housing goals, but also to aid in establishing effective models and strategies for Community Land Trusts across the country.

Together with our partners, we pioneered an important strategic partnership between CLTs and Housing Associations in order to fund, develop and maintain affordable housing.

The model is one in which the CLT acts as project lead, determining the land, number of houses and design and occupancy criteria. Once the CLT secures land, they then own a freehold lease and partner with Housing Association who take on a long-term lease and pay the CLT for ground rent. By limiting home ownership to just 5% of the development and maintaining the rest as rental units, this model prevents schemes like Right to Buy and gives the CLT security in the option to buy the Housing Association out of their lease.