Community Land Trusts

In East Cambridgeshire we have one of the highest proportions of Community Land Trusts in the country.

Community Land Trusts are non-profit organisations run by volunteers.  

They strive to meet the long-term needs of their local community by taking ownership of existing assets, or developing new ones.  

This can include things like acquiring land to steward or to use for developing genuinely affordable homes to meet local housing need.  

It can also involve taking ownership of, and running local hubs, workspaces, pubs, shops, leisure facilities or any other services important to their community.  

Any land or property held by the Community Land Trust remains under their ownership forever and any extra money that a Community Land Trust earns or raises from these assets is directly reinvested back into the community.

Anyone living in the defined Community Land Trust, who supports the aims and objectives of the Trust, can pay £1 to become a member.

Community Land Trusts are defined by statute in Section 79 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008, which states that:

  • a Community Land Trust must be established as a not-for-profit organisation with a membership that is open to all who live and work in a community, the members must also own and control the organisation
  • a Community Land Trust must be established for the express purpose of furthering the social, economic and environmental interests of a local community
  • the land and property assets of a Community Land Trust must be used to provide a benefit to a local community and must be protected in the long-term by a legal asset-lock 

Council support for Community Land Trusts 

We support community-led development and have a special planning policy, Growth 6: Community-led Development, that encourages this.

The planning policy lets communities bring forward sites in areas close to village or town boundaries which might be outside the normal development envelope.  

The community itself decides what is appropriate and will be supported by evidence of community engagement and feedback.  

These sites can include affordable housing, workspaces, community buildings and other amenities.  

The project can also include some ‘market housing’ for sale to help pay for the community development if it would otherwise not go ahead. 

Advice and support

We employ an in-house community advisor who is available to give free advice to communities thinking of setting up their own Community Land Trust and to provide ongoing support through all stages of the Community Land Trust’s journey; from initial group development through to the planning and build stages and guidance through the live stage. 

Grants to support setting up a Community Land Trust

The council also provide support to anyone thinking of setting up a Community Land Trust with grants of up to £5000 available to help with early group stage costs, such as the fee for legal incorporation.  

If you are an early-stage group interested in this grant then please read the following:

For more established groups, we have a pre-development grant that can support groups with pre-development costs. For details on how to apply please read the following:

If you are interested in applying for any of the above, please contact the Community Led Development Advisor on 01353 665555 for more information.  

More information about Community Land Trusts 

The links on this page take you to the websites where you can find out more about Community Land Trusts:

Community Land Trusts in East Cambridgeshire  

The links on this page take you to the websites of established Community Land Trusts in East Cambridgeshire: