Stroud Common Wealth Company Ltd (SCW) is a non-profit company operating since 1999 as a vehicle to (1) own and develop property for community benefit and (2) to enable social enterprise development. 

It has achieved local and national prominence by enabling, assisting and contributing towards the success of a wide range of innovative projects including setting up Gloucestershire Land For People, a pioneering community land trust, Land for People (Wales), Stroud Woodland Co-op, and  enabling land trust and community asset development projects across the country such as the Fordhall Farm community buy out. 

SCW also contributes to action research with New Economics Foundation (NEF), The University of Salford Community Finance Solutions, The University of Wales in Cardiff Co-op Research Centre and Terre de Liens. 

Social and Co-op business development has resulted in developing a number of best practice examples such as Stroud CSA, (Community Supported Agriculture), Stroud FM, The Space Theatre, and The Exchange-for co-op business workspace.

Martin Large's 2010 book, Common Wealth for a free, equal, mutual and sustainable society, includes many case studies from SCW's work, including a Chapter 10 on land and housing called, 'Land for People, Housing and Communities." 

1. Technical assistance and consultancy support for social business and co-op development

2. Capacity building, action research and facilitation

3. Community land trust development support

4. Partnership building with civl society, business and state organisations

5. Pioneering new forms of community and co-op financing to by pass the banks, such as local currency (LETS, Time Hours, Stroud Pounds), and direct lending to business (e.g.£50,000 direct loans raised to support the doubling of our local brewery's capacity)

General situation:

1. The Community Land Trust movement in Britain (which SCW helped get going) is now pioneering a range of pilot CLT projects across the country. Look at www.communitylandtrust.org for more information. This is now being hosted by the National Housing Federation, with Catharine Harrington as the project director. There is funding, capacity building and advice available for new CLTs.

See LILAC in Leeds, St Clements in London (London Citizens) and Cashes Green in Stroud (www.gloucestershirelandforpeople.org) for bigger urban projects. Many CLTs are in rural areas where affordable housing is in short supply, like Chedworth CLT in Gloucestershire or High Bickington in Devon.

Strategy:

1. Stroud CoHousing at Springhill, Stroud is the first new build cohousing scheme in Britain, with 34 homes. It is much visited, as it is so hard to get such schemes developed. Unlike CLTs, though, Springhill is for those who can get mortgages.

2. SCWs goal is to develop mixed tenure developments for social rental, part ownership using mutual home ownership, and a range of neighbourhood common facilities such as workspace, district heating, community gardens etc.