Current vacancies
BUY-IN OPPORTUNITY - Mutual ownership model - 'Everyone owns everything'
*POPPY* (Available from Sept/Oct '23)
Poppy is a cosy, one-bedroom apartment situated on the ground floor. Due to its size, we would recommend it for a single person or couple. As mentioned above, we have lots of community space to share, and this particular flat is ideally situated to access those areas, so easy to 'spill out'!
We would particularly welcome applications from people with skills & capacity to help with garden projects. We are a small community, with an exciting vision, and need people who can actively contribute to our community, both practically and socially.
Ideally, we are looking for a cash-buyer to 'buy in' to living in this unit and we have valued it at £85,000. There is also a start-up contribution of £3,500 associated with this unit, which is payable after a successful trial period. This goes towards the legal fees, stamp duty etc, to which all the original members also contributed.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THE ABOVE VACANCY, AND FEEL YOU ALIGN WITH OUR COMMUNITY VISION & VALUES, PLEASE CONTINUE READING THE INFORMATION BELOW, THEN GET IN TOUCH VIA OUR CONTACT PAGE.
Despite limited availability at present, we are establishing a waiting list. Please get in touch if you wish to be added to our waiting list for 2 or 3 bedroom buy-in properties, or if you wish to be added to the list for the 1-bed rental.
General information regarding joining:
At the core of our vision for Berry Park is the plan to develop a highly productive organic fruit and vegetable garden along with an area of Forest Garden. We work together as a community, so need all members to be able to commit some of their time - on a weekly basis - to the various community tasks. These range from gardening, small building projects eg compost toilets and sheds, doing holiday-let changeovers, general administration, organising events etc.
It's not all work and joining in with our social events is equally valued and a vital part of community cohesion! Happy Hour in the Games Room on Friday nights, shared meals on the lawn, chats around the fire-pit and the occasional night dancing to our favourite music.
The children are at the heart of the community and their favourite activities include art and crafting, music, a love of Harry Potter, Herbology, Judo, looking after the animals, going to the beach, dressing up and many more.
If you haven’t experienced community living before, you will soon discover that it is a balance of personal and shared space, plans and activities. It wouldn’t suit everyone, but if it is for you then the benefits can be amazing.
It’s worth noting that Welcombe is a small, rural community. The nearest town is Bude, 12 miles away, and the nearest cities are Plymouth, 52 miles, and Exeter, 59 miles. The bus stop is 3 miles away and buses are not very frequent. You would need to have your own transport. However, if you infrequently use a car, you may be able to borrow an electric car owned by 2 of our members but which is available for other members to use.
*Pets at Berry Park* - We already have some pets and other animals living on site, so it's about striking a balance between animals, people, wildlife & the physical space available. Pet personalities also come into play, so each application is considered individually.
Application Process
Applicants are invited to tell us a little bit about themselves. We then send out further details about the Berry Park Project including an idea of the financial commitment required in joining our Mutual Home-Ownership Scheme. If applicants are still interested in joining the community, they are invited to join some of us us on a Zoom call in the first instance. They may then be invited to visit Berry Park, and have an opportunity to look around and meet other members.
The next step would be to share more detailed information with us, including disclosing financial information and to confirm that they would be happy to undergo a DBS check (which we need because of the children’s activities here at Berry Park). After that, applicants would be invited you to come and spend a weekend at Berry Park, providing opportunities to work with members of the community on a shared task, most likely gardening, and to share meals and talk informally to different members. It also provides opportunities to explore the surrounding area.
It’s very much a two-way process. In light of this, we would then offer the successful applicants the opportunity to come and live at Berry Park on a trial basis as Provisional Members. The trial period might be 6 months to a year, but could be as little as 3 months.
BUY-IN OPPORTUNITY - Mutual ownership model - 'Everyone owns everything'
*POPPY* (Available from Sept/Oct '23)
Poppy is a cosy, one-bedroom apartment situated on the ground floor. Due to its size, we would recommend it for a single person or couple. As mentioned above, we have lots of community space to share, and this particular flat is ideally situated to access those areas, so easy to 'spill out'!
We would particularly welcome applications from people with skills & capacity to help with garden projects. We are a small community, with an exciting vision, and need people who can actively contribute to our community, both practically and socially.
Ideally, we are looking for a cash-buyer to 'buy in' to living in this unit and we have valued it at £85,000. There is also a start-up contribution of £3,500 associated with this unit, which is payable after a successful trial period. This goes towards the legal fees, stamp duty etc, to which all the original members also contributed.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THE ABOVE VACANCY, AND FEEL YOU ALIGN WITH OUR COMMUNITY VISION & VALUES, PLEASE CONTINUE READING THE INFORMATION BELOW, THEN GET IN TOUCH VIA OUR CONTACT PAGE.
Despite limited availability at present, we are establishing a waiting list. Please get in touch if you wish to be added to our waiting list for 2 or 3 bedroom buy-in properties, or if you wish to be added to the list for the 1-bed rental.
General information regarding joining:
At the core of our vision for Berry Park is the plan to develop a highly productive organic fruit and vegetable garden along with an area of Forest Garden. We work together as a community, so need all members to be able to commit some of their time - on a weekly basis - to the various community tasks. These range from gardening, small building projects eg compost toilets and sheds, doing holiday-let changeovers, general administration, organising events etc.
It's not all work and joining in with our social events is equally valued and a vital part of community cohesion! Happy Hour in the Games Room on Friday nights, shared meals on the lawn, chats around the fire-pit and the occasional night dancing to our favourite music.
The children are at the heart of the community and their favourite activities include art and crafting, music, a love of Harry Potter, Herbology, Judo, looking after the animals, going to the beach, dressing up and many more.
If you haven’t experienced community living before, you will soon discover that it is a balance of personal and shared space, plans and activities. It wouldn’t suit everyone, but if it is for you then the benefits can be amazing.
It’s worth noting that Welcombe is a small, rural community. The nearest town is Bude, 12 miles away, and the nearest cities are Plymouth, 52 miles, and Exeter, 59 miles. The bus stop is 3 miles away and buses are not very frequent. You would need to have your own transport. However, if you infrequently use a car, you may be able to borrow an electric car owned by 2 of our members but which is available for other members to use.
*Pets at Berry Park* - We already have some pets and other animals living on site, so it's about striking a balance between animals, people, wildlife & the physical space available. Pet personalities also come into play, so each application is considered individually.
Application Process
Applicants are invited to tell us a little bit about themselves. We then send out further details about the Berry Park Project including an idea of the financial commitment required in joining our Mutual Home-Ownership Scheme. If applicants are still interested in joining the community, they are invited to join some of us us on a Zoom call in the first instance. They may then be invited to visit Berry Park, and have an opportunity to look around and meet other members.
The next step would be to share more detailed information with us, including disclosing financial information and to confirm that they would be happy to undergo a DBS check (which we need because of the children’s activities here at Berry Park). After that, applicants would be invited you to come and spend a weekend at Berry Park, providing opportunities to work with members of the community on a shared task, most likely gardening, and to share meals and talk informally to different members. It also provides opportunities to explore the surrounding area.
It’s very much a two-way process. In light of this, we would then offer the successful applicants the opportunity to come and live at Berry Park on a trial basis as Provisional Members. The trial period might be 6 months to a year, but could be as little as 3 months.
The current members of The Berry Park Community have a range of skills and interests. Some work from home and others go outside to work, either full or part-time. Two are retired are two are semi-retired. The various work roles include:
* Don't live on site, but are still involved in the project.
- Stonework and landscaping
- Forest School leader
- Musician
- Crafter
- Music Therapy Practitioner
- Therapeutic Coach
- Teacher – home educating
- Retired builder
- Retired administrator/trainer
- Pole/Aerial Instructor
- Gardener/Reiki Practitioner
- Potter*
- Software engineer*
- Project Manager*
* Don't live on site, but are still involved in the project.
Several members are enthusiastic about arts and crafts including performance, drawing and painting, photography, knitting and spinning. Other interests include surfing, cycling and running. Many of us are passionate about music and enjoy going to festivals. We also plan to host music events showcasing the talents of those at Berry Park and other local musicians.
