Benefits of a CLT

Community Land Trusts (CLTs) are a form of community-led housing, set up and run by ordinary people to develop and manage homes as well as other assets important to that community, like community enterprises, food growing or workspaces. CLTs act as long-term stewards of housing, ensuring that it remains genuinely affordable, based on what people actually earn in their area, not just for now but for every future occupier.

There are now 255 legally incorporated Community Land Trusts in England and Wales, and including new groups forming the number is over 300 CLTs in England and Wales, and the sector has grown six-fold in the last six years and over 17,000 people are members of CLTs. The largest Community Land Trusts have over 1000 members each. Community Land Trusts have developed 935 permanently affordable homes to date and are working to develop an additional 16,000 homes in the next few years.

The CLT model itself is an import from the United States, where CLTs are widely recognised as a method of delivering permanently affordable housing. There is also an emerging CLT movement in Belgium, France, Italy and Australia.

CLT basics

CLTs are not a legal form in themselves (like a Company). However, CLTs are defined in law so there are certain things that a CLT must be and do:

• A CLT must be set up to benefit a defined community;

• A CLT must be not-for-private-profit. This means that they can, and should, make a surplus as a community business, but that surplus must be used to benefit the community;

• Local people living and working in the community must have the opportunity to join the CLT as members;

• Those members control the CLT (usually through a board being elected from the membership).

CLTs have to take on a legal form that works for them. See the 'How We're Managed  section for more information.