Penny Bernstock

London CLT

London Community Land Trust (CLT) supports local communities to create permanently affordable homes and transform their neighborhoods. Using a model of genuine community partnership, we work with teams of local people to campaign, bid for land, design, own and manage homes and community spaces in their boroughs. We make homes genuinely and permanently affordable by linking home prices to local median incomes and ensuring residents do not have to spend more than a third of their income on housing costs. When residents move out, they must resell at rates linked to local earnings, making homes affordable in perpetuity. Our model offers a way to address the growing gap in the market between those who qualify for social housing and those who can afford to buy on the open market, making sure people are not priced out of their neighbourhoods and communities. London CLT aims to see local people having control over their homes, blocks, neighbourhoods and further afield through our community-led process. We also collaborate with partner organisations to promote innovation and culture change in the housing sector and beyond. Our work began with a grassroots campaign with Citizens UK to create 23 homes at St Clements in Tower Hamlets, London's first CLT. In collaboration with local groups, we now have a pipeline of 150+ affordable homes in development across London boroughs including Lewisham, Greenwich, Lambeth, Southwark, Redbridge and Hackney. London CLT is a democratic and community-based organisation and anyone who lives in London can become a member to get involved and support our work.