Last weekend, I attended a course at a long-established intentional community in the UK, the Cannon Frome Court community, near Ledbury. The course was designed for people like me who have decided to set up their own community. It was useful.
Canon Frome Court near Ledbury, has some 20 homes on 40 acres of land which they farm, and this is their main focus. In addition to pasture, the land includes a fabulous 2 acre classic red-brick walled Victorian garden. The community produces most of its own food, including meat, eggs, fruit, veg, milk, cheese and yoghurt.
Accommodation consists of a large rambling country house that was previously a school (and is now flats and communal space), a converted stable block and a few cottages. Water comes from a borehole much of their own power is produced from an array of photovoltaic panels. There has been a lot of change over the years but they have weathered the storms of time. The information they provided was honest and helpful, and I also gained insights from talking to attenders, who ranged in age, circumstances and lifestyle.
As a follow up, the community emailed their core documents including decision making protocols, vetting procedures for prospective members, budgets and accounts. This was open and generous of them, and extremely useful.
One particular discussion helped to clarify my thinking. I am in the process of reading Diana Leafe Christian’s excellent book, ‘Creating a life together’ – a bible of do’s and don’ts for starting a community. In fact, Canon Frome Court had invited Diana to visit them, to help solve a problem they had encountered.
While it may seem like a good idea to have a total consensus decision-making system, the downside is that if just one person disagrees with a proposal, for any reason, they can block it….
Click here to read the rest of the blog on my website, where you can also find more content and information on my book, ‘The Ultimate Relationship… the one with yourself’.
Thanks Marianne. A lot more coming...
Really interesting, just wish I could join. Look forward to hearing more about how you get on.