Graceworks Gardens – Creating a Community for the Future

Having helped Graceworks to purchase a site for their intentional cohousing community, we went along to take a look at how they were getting on…

We were really pleased to act for Graceworks Gardens Limited and initially for the Community of Grace, helping them to transition from the sale of Victorian premises in Leicester which were proving hard to maintain, to the acquisition of their new home at West Drayton Farm in Nottinghamshire. 

The new premises:

• were bought by modern auction

• comprised of 7 properties, 2 barns, garages and 8 acres of land

• have proven to be a perfect location for the group’s long-held vision to create a supportive cohousing community.

What did we do? 

Wrigleys’ Property Solicitor Morgan Gibson explains: 

“it was an unusual transaction because of the modern auction process particularly challenging as the site had five separate title numbers, but the sellers had only carried out searches on the largest title area there were also two connected sellers. working on this project gave us a better understanding of the modern auction process and the legal documents and searches done for these transactions, which differ from typical residential transactions”. 

Wrigleys’ Partner Emma Ridge adds,

“we had to grapple with how a charity (Community of Grace) could work as a cohousing group - the two are generally incompatible. In the end, the charity gave up the tax benefits it would have had if it had bought the site and formed a cohousing company limited by guarantee instead. the group felt the benefits of cohousing outweighed the tax benefits, although it did mean they had to pay stamp duty on their purchase. the charity loaned the cohousing company money and took a lease of the site for its purposes from the cohousing company. This presented its own challenges in ensuring that the Charity was compliant with charity law and the charity had to take separate advice on this.” 

We went along to see how the group were getting on and were kindly shown around by Ben Brown and Dan Hussey and treated to some of the group’s wonderful home-grown cuisine!

Image: Ben and Dan with Morgan Gibson in the farm kitchen 

About the project 

Ben explained that the Community of Grace was founded back in the 1980s by the late Reverend David Morris, with the vision to “create and sustain something like a home and family or household and community with people who have lost their own home, or even never really had one”.

Having taken on some alms houses in Leicester and provided housing there for those in acute need for over 35 years, the group recognised that these aging, listed properties limited their wider aspirations to offer the peace and green space needed to aid people’s wellbeing and recovery. 

Having also set up a successful Community Garden project on some vacant land behind a local church in Leicester, the group embarked on an extensive period of research to find a site that could help them to combine an affordable, supportive community housing resource with a sustainable food production and gardening project.

They talked to the East Midlands Community Led Housing Hub and learnt about cohousing, and took part in a learning day at the LILAC project in Leeds to see how they might achieve similar goals.

Before COVID hit, the group had grown to around 20 adults and 10 children purely through word of mouth. During the pandemic, they took the time to consider what the core elements of their cohousing project would be. 

Ben explains, “We knew from the start we wanted to be multi-generational, diverse and inclusive, with families, single adults and older generations. Those of us involved with GraceWorks and Community of Grace were very aware that that isolation was a big problem and that the best examples of abundant communities had the full spectrum of ages, genders and backgrounds. This would mean we would need affordable housing to buy as well as supported housing to rent”. 

Members actively wanted to be at the centre of the design process of the site. Shared space was vital to be the heart of the community. Part of this this was because they wanted to create a “live-work” environment: somewhere with space for growing food, having livestock, trying out microbusinesses, and a kitchen and dining area they could gather in.

Image: sampling the orchard produce

Image: The pond and summer house 

Fast forward to September 2023 and the company purchased the farm in Nottinghamshire following one or two false starts with other sites. 

Ben reflects, “we were very fortunate that the group could finance the scheme through members’ contributions, including Community of Grace, and a generous loan from friends who believed in what we were doing. It would have been very difficult if we had needed a commercial loan because the UK economy was in turmoil at the time and mortgage rates were spiralling upwards”. 

When we paid GraceWorks a visit in September, the group was busy across the site, creating more accommodation capacity, developing the farm and a related business model for a farm shop to benefit the local neighbourhood, as well as getting help from the neighbouring farmer’s sheep to manage the land! 

Ben and Dan agreed that “there hasn’t been a dull moment since we moved in! There will be crises and calamities but there is an underlying sense of support across our community”. 

Image: some of the single person accommodation units at GraceWorks on a good drying day! 

At Wrigleys, we will follow their progress with great interest! You can read more about the GraceWorks project in the latest copy of “Cohousing: Diggers and Dreamers Review Volume 2” available from Cohousing in Britain | Volume Two – Diggers and Dreamers 

If you are considering creating an intentional community and require legal advice, please do get in touch with our experienced community led housing team by visiting Community-Led Housing | Charity & Social Enterprise Specialist Solicitors | Wrigleys - Wrigleys Solicitors LLP 

We offer a free initial 20-minute consultation call and also produce regular newsletters and bespoke free guides for our community led housing clients. You can sign up to receive these at Guide to Legal Structures and Community-led housing (copy 01)