Members of Keswick Housing Co-op would provide themselves with shared housing which would be collectively owned and managed, and offered at a reasonable rent. The co-op will consist of people who share an ethical outlook on life and who are committed to changing society for the better. They may, for example, be involved in Earth First! eco-activism www.earthfirst.org.uk , or Green Party political activism www.greenparty.org.uk .
Keswick Housing Co-op will be an active participant in the network of housing co-ops, worker co-ops and social centres called Radical Routes www.radicalroutes.org.uk which gives advice, mutual support and loans to member co-ops.
Houses will be bought by paying rent for accommodation which repays loans taken out with:
· Ethical banks such as Tridos Bank www.tridos.co.uk, or The Co-operative Bank www.co-operativebank.co.uk.
· Ethical building societies such as the Ecology Building Society www.ecology.co.uk.
· Radical Routes, as mentioned above.
· Loan Stock, which is money loaned by family and friends for a set time and interest.
· And personal savings.
If you are a sociable activist who has read How to set up a housing co-op: step-by-step, and will participate in the Radical Routes co-operative network, and would like to share a house in Keswick, please contact Ian St.John at:
Keswick is an attractive market town beside Derwent Water in the Lake District surrounded by beautiful fells.
Finding a decent place to live in Keswick at a reasonable price is very difficult. Properties are expensive to rent or buy; many are snapped up and let as holiday homes to serve the tourist trade. The way around this dilemma is to come together with like-minded people and form a housing cooperative which would buys houses. How this is done is laid out in the concise guide How to set up a Housing Co-operative: step-by-step.
