More about Redfield
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Our legal structure is that of a Fully Mutual Housing Co-operative, where members are effectively both Landlord and Tenant. The legal structure merely forms the bare bones of a culture of collective living that has developed since 1978.
We live as a single household which means that we spend a lot of time together. The rewards that flow from this way of life are many, varied and sometimes unexpected. Sharing your life in this way, with a group of like-minded people, makes for an active and involved life where something is always happening. At the same time the personal challenge that this creates should not be under-estimated. It constantly challenges us to take full responsibility for ourselves.
Decision-making is by consensus of all members of the community at the weekly meeting. As well as community business there is space for feelings to be expressed in a supportive atmosphere. One meeting per month is set aside for any issues affecting personal or community morale. We feel that this is an area of communal life that cannot be left to look after itself. Communal life tends to highlight individual foibles and test self-esteem. As well as bringing us closer together, open communication and shared feelings are necessary to limit the scope for misunderstanding.
Day to day life, whether necessary domestic tasks or large joint projects, is managed through the various systems that have grown up over the years but this is only a basis and lots of creative effort and joining in is always needed. As well as gardening, building maintenance and animal management there is logging for the wood-burning stoves and catering for events large and small.
Some members also have jobs outside the community and these tend to be part-time to allow for full participation in community life. In recent years they have been as varied as driving, piano tuning, working with children and older people, carpentry, computing, lecturing, blacksmithing, and publishing.
We all live in the main house and pay a rent based in part on the space we occupy. The size of this is determined by need and availability. No space is occupied permanently as moves within the house are occasionally necessary due to changing circumstances.
A central feature of our life at Redfield is that we eat together. At weekends there are often 30+ people in the dining room as our numbers are swelled by visitors; these might include official visitors, potential members, personal and community guests.
Everyone takes part in the cooking rota and all types of diets are catered for. We keep sheep, chickens and ducks which are owned by the community and as with our crops, they are raised organically.
Much of the house is communal space. The social hub of the community is based around the large kitchen, and the adjoining breakfast room, where there's almost always something going on. There are some very large rooms used for different activities like the regular sessions of singing, dancing and drumming, as well as crèches and the extremely regular birthday parties. These rooms are also used for the variety of events happening throughout the year.
The Community also holds its own events including large camping events that spread over much of the buildings and grounds. In recent times there have been the WWOOF A.G.M, the European Permaculture Conference and the Inter-Community Volleyball Tournament.
To sum up, we feel that to live here happily you will need the ability to give and take, a commitment to the group and a lot of goodwill. A sense of humour is definitely an asset. If it works for you, you can expect a fulfilling and supportive way of life, but it is not always easy and we believe that what you get out of Redfield is directly proportional to what you put in.
Follow these links to learn more about Redfield:
Redfield,
the house and its estate A description of Redfield House and the surrounding
land
Ways to
experience Redfield Various ways to visit Redfield
Events at
Redfield Visitor days, courses, maintenance weeks etc
Diggers & Dreamers Directory of British communities
Low-Impact Living Initiative Environmental organisation based at Redfield
World Tents Another company based at Redfield
Communities
Homepage North American communities directory
Eurotopia European communities directory
Co-operatives-UK The co-operative movement, promoting co-ops in the UK
Radical Routes Finance and support for co-ops and communities
Redfield South Dakota No connection at all other then the name!
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The material used in these pages is copyright. 
1996 Redley Housing Co-op Ltd.