More money and more land needed for London community land trusts and housing co-operatives

London’s community land trusts and housing cooperatives need more financial support and help accessing land, a London Assembly Housing Committee report has found.

The report – Building Community Power: Expanding Cooperative Housing & Community Land Trusts in London – sets out how community land trusts¹ and housing cooperatives² offer real opportunities to help address London’s housing crisis in ways that can complement more mainstream forms of housing, delivering homes that are affordable and tailored for the needs of local communities.

But the Committee’s investigation also uncovered challenges including uncertainty over the renewal of the Mayor of London’s Community Housing Fund, the high cost of land in London, and evidence that the barriers to building homes for Black and Global Majority Londoners, and working-class Londoners, can be even harder to overcome in the CLT and co-operative housing sector.

Key recommendations include:

• In the Government’s upcoming spending review, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) should engage with the GLA to identify new funds for housing cooperatives and community land trusts to deliver housing schemes in London.
• The Mayor should identify and provide additional revenue funding to the London Community Led-Housing Hub to enable the Hub to continue to provide support to housing cooperatives and community land trusts.
• The Mayor should direct the further release of Greater London Authority (GLA) Group land for community land trusts and housing cooperatives through the Mayor’s Small Sites Small Builders programme.
• Through the London Community-Led Housing Hub, the GLA’s Housing and Land directorate should work with partners to develop a strategy by the end of 2025-26 to increase the number of community land trusts and housing cooperatives run by and for groups underrepresented in the sector, such as Black and Global Majority Londoners.

Chair of the London Assembly Housing Committee, Sem Moema AM, said:

“London has a housing crisis, and this Committee has consistently pushed for increased investment to deliver the affordable homes that Londoners deserve.

“While there is no one answer to fixing this crisis, it is important that communities who want to provide their own solutions through community-led housing projects are supported to do so.

“With additional funding, increased support and advice through the London Community-Led Housing Hub, and the release of more GLA land, many more Londoners could benefit from these projects.

“In particular, community land trusts and housing co-operatives can put real power into the hands of Londoners to deliver the type of homes and spaces they need – while playing their part in reducing London’s housing shortfall.”