Community land trusts in England: from movement to model

The role of community land trusts (CLTs) in providing affordable housing has grown in the last decade. Originating in the USA, CLTs respond to problems of housing shortage, affordability, and community disempowerment. CLTs hold land in trust and apply restrictions to resale values and rents that challenge transactional, market-based logics that characterise private housing markets. This paper will assess the growth and development of CLTs in England, reflecting on processes of institutionalisation, the formation and sustainability of enabling policy and support mechanisms, and challenges of embedding alternative approaches to housing production and consumption. This analysis will reveal the significant potential of this activity to empower under-served communities and resolve housing issues, but will highlight its fragility and the constraints that communities and advocacy organisations encounter when scaling up localised initiatives.