Blog

Some people drawn to Suvana’s vision of living well within a shared community based on positive values may worry that they are expected to ‘be a Buddhist’ in some way.

Cocreator Barry explains in this video why, despite not being a Buddhist, he wants to live at Suvana.

If you are curious about the idea of living in a community based on universal Buddhist values, come along to an information session on Saturday, 21st September from 1:30-4:00pm. 

The meeting will feature brief presentations addressing questions such as:

• What is the vision for the Northstowe site?
• What resources or income are needed to live there?
• Next steps?

There’ll be a Q&A to discuss anything that comes up.

This event is hosted by Cambridge Buddhist Centre, and you can find more info about it on their website, here. 

And bring your friends, whether practicing Buddhist or not!

As anticipated in our last post, Suvana Cohousing is now able to share the exciting news that we are collaborating with TOWN, the UK’s leading developer of cohousing, as we explore the delivery of homes for our community on part of their site in the Northstowe development in Greater Cambridge. 

So this means that our vision is a step closer to reality. That’s our vision for a mutually supportive multi-generational community in which residents of individual homes also share and look after common spaces and facilities, living on the basis of universal Buddhist values. 

But this will only happen if enough of us wish to be part of it! 

So it means that we are inviting people – particularly younger folk – who want to live in a community of kindness and mindfulness to join us in Northstowe. 

If you aren’t already involved with Suvana, your first step is to become a cocreator. This enables you to be part of codesigning the community and get priority over your choice of home. There’s no commitment. 

We already have over 40 cocreator households, so you’ll be in good company.

Open information session 

If your friends or family are curious about the idea of creating a community of households living based on universal Buddhist values, bring them along to an info session on Saturday, 21st September from 1:30-4:00pm. 

This meeting will include several short presentations to answer questions like the following:

• What is the vision for the site at Northstowe?
• What level of income or resources do I need to live there?
• What are the next steps for Suvana?
• How can I get involved?

Plus there’ll be a Q&A to answer any other queries you have.

This event is hosted by Cambridge Buddhist Centre, and you can find more info about it on their website, here. 

Dear friends

We are very excited to share with you a new video interview between Jnanavaca and our chair Tejasvini, about our cohousing project. 

Jnanavaca is a prominent and experienced Buddhist teacher who lives at London Buddhist Centre. He’s a public preceptor in the Triratna Buddhist Order.

He’s excited about what we are trying to setup.

He asks Tejasvini all about our vision and progress, particularly drawing out what it might be like to live in this way. And he shares his own perspective and experience of community living, linking it with Sangharakshita’s vision for a new society.

The video is 25 minutes and very rich! So grab a cup of something and enjoy! It’s subtitled so you can watch it anywhere.

Please then share it with your friends who may be curious about community living based on Buddhist values. 

Suvana Cohousing continues to look for a site and gain new cocreators to craft our vision.

Last year at our AGM we agreed to form an unincorporated association to carry our work forward until such time as we receive further grants and need to have an active limited company.

Our current committee consists of:

• Tejasvini (chair)
• Vimaladipa (secretary)
• Satyanandi (treasurer)
• Mahasraddha
• Jeremy Peters

Many thanks also to Ray Brown and Maitrivajri who were involved for part of the year. We are looking for a membership secretary and more cocreators to get involved at this level and also to join us.

In fact, we decided earlier this year that we need to increase our membership, particularly of those interested in buying properties in Suvana. Without enough purchasers, the sums do not add up and we would not be able to provide the accommodation we would like to for Triratna retirees who need rental accommodation. We would also like a multi-generational cohousing project and so need to be able to attract younger people, which might also need thought and possibly subsidy. Topics to be explored!

Currently we have 19 [now 20!] households signed up, but as a result of wanting to increase our membership, we are embarking on a publicity campaign which Jeremy is spearheading. We’d like to record interviews with any cocreators who are willing to talk about what inspires them about the project, and use short video clips especially on Instagram to enthuse and inform people who may want to join us. The first four are in! There will also be other interviews, articles and various forms of communications to grow membership.

I was interviewed recently by Jnanavaca, a senior Triratna Order Member from London, about community living. More in the next blog post.

At the same time, we are involved with an application from the Abhayaratna Trust to the Windhorse Trust for funding to carry out market research among Triratna Order members to find out what housing need exists among them, what interest there is in cohousing, and whether there is interest for investment, particularly to help Triratna retirees. We aren’t only appealing to people involved with Triratna, but that is where we have links and are able to easily direct market research. We would like to attract anyone who would like to join a community inspired by loving kindness, generosity, simplicity, contentment and awareness.

The results of this research will assist on several fronts: spreading the word about the project, and using it as a basis for discussions with all our stakeholders: site owners, planners, developers, financers, neighbours.

At our April cocreators’ meeting we had a very interesting presentation from Frances Wright, community housing officer for the developer TOWN, who are involved in a number of cohousing developments and also have part of the contract for developing infrastructure at Hartree, the Cambridge North East development due to happen over the next 5 -20 years. Frances outlined an early possibility for our group in part of a larger building which could also house another cohousing group – and potentially share facilities with us – and possibly life sciences companies on the ground floor.

Another cocreator event was a visit to Cannock Mill Cohousing – very interesting and we will be discussing some of our impressions, inspirations and so on at the AGM.

We are actively looking for more cocreators and people to be involved in shaping our community. We still have most of the work ahead of us, but with a promising development in a city like Cambridge, it’s a very worthwhile project in which to put our energy.

Tejasvini
October 2023

With quite a bit of activity on several fronts, we are looking forward to meeting more Suvana cocreators at our AGM.

It’s on Sunday 15th October, at 12 noon to 2pm, at Cambridge Buddhist Centre.

The packed agenda includes Tejasvini’s Chair’s report for the year; news about and opportunities to influence several new developments in progressing our community; a presentation from a visit to Cannock Mill cohousing (pictured), and the first showing of a special video interview with a very prominent Buddhist teacher.

It would be helpful to know the numbers coming along, so we’d appreciate a quick email letting us know.

Those of us who came to the AGM / public meeting in November had a lovely time. But no need to feel like you missed out – we are meeting again next month and you are warmly invited!

How do you want to live?

We would be delighted if you would join us for a facilitated workshop, on the morning of Saturday 15th April 2023.

It’s aimed at everyone who has shown interest in living in an intentional community based on Buddhist values.

As well as reflecting together on what you want it to be like and where, we will have time to catch up with each other over tea and cake.

Once details are finalised we will share more information on the workshop with those who’ve booked a place. The venue is Cambridge Buddhist Centre.

When we come together we always have a lovely connecting time, and this event promises more of that.

Please book here.

Connect with the new cohousing community!

We agreed a few changes at our AGM in November, like a new bank account and a more informal structure for the time being, as well as welcoming new cocreators and forming a committee.

The cocreators who came along to the meeting reported feeling more enthused about Suvana and our vision, pursuing opportunities that come along.

Inspired too by this video about La Borda housing cooperative in Barcelona, we had a rich conversation about the North East Cambridge core site, about which we continue to be in discussion with one of the developers, TOWN, who have lots of experience in cohousing. And we talked about being open to locations elsewhere in the country.

We agreed that Suvana’s aims at this stage would be better served if operated as an unincorporated association (to run alongside the formal limited company) and so we are delighted to invite you to join “Suvana Cohousing Community”!

As with the previous arrangement, to be a cocreator is £20 per household per year and gives you influence in deciding on location, what our new homes would be like, and priority in allocation.

The full rules are available here.

If you remain interested in the idea of living in a high quality intentional community based on Buddhist values, we hope you will join us or renew your Suvana cocreator membership, albeit in the new guise of this new community association.

To do so, please make a payment of £20 per household online to our new bank account:

Name: Suvana Cohousing
Account Number: 25840665
Sort Code: 52-10-46
Reference: your name

Then please email to inform us that you have done so.

If you are struggling with any aspect of this process, please email and we can arrange a phone call.

The new committee very much looks forward to welcoming you – as a cocreator and/or to the event on 15th April.

Chair’s report, 2022

In February 2022 our friend and treasurer, Lee Walford, died following a bike accident. Many of us feel a great loss, principally of a friend, but also on the Suvana board of a trusted colleague who we have not yet been able to replace.

In the last twelve months we have also lost some of our other board and exec members, as well as welcoming new people. Kamalamati resigned as membership secretary, and Dayanita has also resigned from the exec. Many thanks to them for the energy and friendliness that they have contributed to Suvana, and they both continue as cocreators. We were very glad when Ray Brown joined us on the exec with his experience of housing and developments, and Mahasraddha has more recently agreed to join the Board. He is the Chair of the Abhayaratna Trust and well connected in with the wider Order. He has already been to several exec meetings. The exec has continued to meet monthly and has also had some input from Jenna Brame, our local Rural and Community-Led Housing Development Officer.

Following advice from HMRC we decided to make the company as it is currently configured into a dormant company. If we were to continue as an unincorporated association (like a sports club), with a new set of simplified rules, we could receive membership fees without paying tax on them, and decide at a future time what the most suitable structure would be for going forward.

The search has continued for a site on which to build our cohousing project, and we are hoping that when the core site at the larger Cambridge North East development is starting to be built, we might be able to bid for a block of flats there. However, a block of flats is a different vision to our original hope for a mixture of houses and flats with some outside space as well as a common house. The land prices in Cambridge are some of the most expensive in the country, and so the question arises whether this is the best location to build housing for Triratna retirees.

To summarise, the questions to address at the AGM in November are:-

• Are any of the cocreators willing to fill the roles of membership secretary and/or treasurer? (If no one does come forward, we will put the project into abeyance)
  
• Shall we continue as an unincorporated association?
  
• Is the prospect of a development of flats, with very limited outside space, too much of a deviation from our original vision?

We have done a lot of preliminary work for a cohousing scheme, and it is hoped that this and our knowledge gained would be transferable to another location and context if we end the possibility of Suvana in Cambridge.

However, the Board are optimistic that we can and will build a wonderful cohousing development in Cambridge, so if this is what your dream is too, please join us for the AGM and help determine how we take Suvana forward.

Tejasvini (chair)
October 2022

The Suvana Cohousing Board met at Thrive Cafe in Cambridge on 24th October 2021, that a number of cocreators attended too.

The Chair, Tejasvini, gave the following report. If you would like a copy of the accounts, please email.

Chair’s report 2021

This is the second year that Suvana Cohousing has been up and running as a registered company, and we are growing both in experience and a feeling that the group is coming together and functioning well.

The board of directors has changed a little, and now comprises the following people: Vimaladipa (Imogen Tennison) (Secretary), Jeremy Peters, Ian Collins, Lee Walford (Arwen) (Treasurer) and Tejasvini (Rosie Bell) (chair). The executive group comprises the directors plus Kamalamati (Mary Wild) (Membership), Dayanita (Christiane Meckseper) and Ray Brown. We would like to express our thanks to all of them, and also to Sarvajit and to Cittamodani who have stepped down as directors, but who both made very valuable contributions: Sarvajit as our treasurer, and Cittamodani as the person who put in most of the work developing the land brief and the allocations policy.

Our 20 cocreators are very much part of the project and we have had several meetings with them, reviewing what might be possible locations, a social event and talks from two members of the exec. The cocreators’ enthusiasm, engagement and ideas feed in to the exec who are doing most of the behind-the-scenes work, and the exec is also drawn from them.

The main areas focussed on this year have been searching for a site, developing contacts, and working on a business and financial plan, so that if a site becomes available that would not be suitable for a developer to be involved, the exec can move quickly to secure it. There have been a number of local events which were organised by the Council, looking at updating the local plan for Cambridge, and at possible new developments around Cambridge, and Suvana’s presence made sure that Cohousing was mentioned and promoted in these forums.

A number of sites have been looked at by different members of the exec. With experience we are narrowing down what we are looking for. The beautiful dilapidated farm, with masses of potential, would have proved too complicated and costly, with a lot of planning issues as it was both in the green belt and a conservation area. A gem for someone! We also looked at two sites next to each other that had been entertainment venues, which were on the river in Cambridge and so very central, but financially didn’t add up. Similarly there was a former water pumping station that had been converted into office space, but without planning to convert to residential use we couldn’t have raised the finance.

We have had meetings with representatives from two possible lenders, both of which were encouraging, and also challenging as we will need to raise 20% of the capital if we go down this route rather than with a developer. We are having further talks with a local developer who has experience of community projects.

We nearly obtained another grant, this one from Eastern Community Homes to enable us to bring in a consultant to assist finishing the business and financial plan. Although it was approved, Eastern Community Homes had misunderstood the conditions of the grant and it was approved too late to succeed, as the money would have had to have been spent by 30th September. Our business planning team are taking it forward at present.

Although the main challenge at the moment is finding a site, we are doing valuable work putting in place the policies and structures we will need to progress once we do have a site. We are confident we will get there in time, and that persistence will pay off. The vision of building a Buddhist community, living together but with our own front doors, still holds. Particularly the aspiration of Buddhist almshouses for Triratna retirees helps keep the vision and the project alive and growing.

Tejasvini (chair)
October 2021

By Tejasvini (Rosie Bell)

While we remain focussed on finding a site for our new community, Suvana Cohousing has come a long way in our first year since becoming a Company Limited by Guarantee in May 2019.

The directors, who are appointed for four years, are Imogen Tennison (Secretary), Jeremy Peters, Ian Collins, Sarvajit John Turner (Treasurer), Cittamodani Jenny Henderson and Tejasvini Rosie Bell (Chair). The executive comprises the directors plus Kamalamati Mary Wild. We are also very grateful for the valuable contributions made by Jenny Arthern and Shubhanaga Simpson before they stepped down in recent months. We’re now looking for two new members of the exec, and welcome interest from any of our cocreators who would like to deepen your involvement.

Currently there are 26 paid-up cocreators, made up of 21 households. We decided to renew all the memberships from October every year to simplify the complexity of having a range of joining dates. There have been a number of workshops and social events with our cocreators and we maintain this website and regular communications with them and with a wider community of interested people.

The main challenge currently is to find a site to build on and Cambridge is a difficult place to do this as the price of property is so high.

To assist us we commissioned a site search agent who put us in touch with a number of land opportunities, but after further investigation most of them proved to be unsuitable in various ways. City sites now seem to be priced with a view to building large blocks of flats or small studio apartments, which maximise return on investment, and in many cases avoid the requirement to provide affordable housing which is central to our vision. This in itself pushes up the price of land. Although new legislation is planned in the housing sector to simplify the planning process, only an outline has been announced, so although change is on the way no firm details are known.

It has become clear that due in part to the price of land the best option for us is to enter into a partnership with a developer and we have held discussions with two large ones and one smaller.

One possibility in the further future, perhaps 7-8 years’ time, is the Cambridge North East development. Developer Town will be involved with this, and intend to build a Cohousing community in the first phase, although who that community will be is as yet undecided, but we do have good connections with them.

We have also had discussions with a housing association with a view to a possible partnership. Affordable housing is very much part of the vision of Suvana and in order to both deliver (build) and manage affordable housing, the right structure is needed. Although it is possible in theory to create our own company to do this and to fulfil the requirements of a ‘registered provider’ (RP) of affordable housing, a safer route is to partner with an existing housing association. One proviso is that we are in control of the allocations and so this would have to be agreed with the local authority at the stage of getting planning permission. We have drafted an Allocations Policy so that it is ready when needed.

We have also developed a Land Brief which sets out the kind of site we are looking for and is an initial document for the architect or developer to ascertain what we want to build.

We spent quite a lot of time and energy applying for a Community Housing Fund grant (and would like to particularly express our appreciation to Shubhanaga for his work on this), but unfortunately without a site it was turned down. This fund is now closed and has not been replaced.

Finding a site is the most significant next step for us, and we ask all our cocreators to help us with this, with local contacts or any initiatives they can take.

For those looking to occupy affordable or social housing, it is necessary to register with either Cambridge City or South Cambs District Council.

All of us could benefit from visiting and learning from other cohousing communities.

Our vision holds true during this time of uncertainty, and with the support and enthusiasm and patience of all of us together, we hope to make Suvana a reality.