Cohousing is a way of living which brings individuals and families together to share common aims and facilities, whilst also enjoying their own self-contained accommodation and personal space. This enables a richer lifestyle at a lower cost.
Living in a neighbourhood where you know everyone, and can easily reach out to neighbours for support, reduces the all too common problems of isolation and loneliness. Sharing resources, group food buying, community food growing and meal sharing can all make day-to-day living more affordable and more enjoyable too.
Cohousing neighbourhoods offer particular benefits for children, who have friends nearby and somewhere to play safely. Older people can also find companionship and mutual support.
The heart of any cohousing community is the Common House. This is a shared space where people can come together to eat, meet, celebrate and work.
Cohousing neighbourhoods are set up and run by their members, so everyone is consciously committed to living as a community. Developments are usually designed to encourage social contact and make it easy to pool resources – from car sharing to doing your washing, or growing and eating food together.
Find out more about cohousing in general, or the Bridport Cohousing development, Hazelmead.