After many years in the planning, High Bickington Community Property Trust is now in the first phases of the redevelopment of a former farm adjacent to the small village of High Bickington in north Devon.The masterplan (shown here) include 16 affordable and equity share homes, 23 open market homes, 6 work units, a community hall, sports facilities, a new primary school, a biomass district heating plant for the whole site, a health centre, land for growing food and a community woodland.
The Trust has worked in tandem with High Bickington Parish Council, and with the support of both Devon County Council and Torridge District Council. The objective was to meet locally defined needs and aspirations through the development of Little Bickington Farm in a way that would ensure a sustainable and viable social and economic future for High Bickington parishioners, now and in the future. More than 200 local people have become members of the High Bickington Community Property Trust. Many of them have freely given extensive amounts of their time, energy and ideas to enable the plans to be developed. The project has received extensive financial support from public and charitable sources.
More detail on this ambitious community initiative can be found here: http://www.highbickington.org/