Frome Area Community Land Trust

27/05/2026

The other important "thing" that we can do as a Community Land Trust is hold freehold of social rented homes so that they remain as such in perpituity. That is why we are pleased to be in partnership with Mayday Saxonvale to allow this to happen. This is a significant part of the development being for the benefit of the Frome community especially those Frome families and individuals who desperately need a social rented home

What is a Community Benefit Society, and why does it matter?

A Community Benefit Society (CBS) is a legal structure created specifically for organisations that exist to benefit the wider community, not private individuals.

That matters because when local people are investing in a long-term project like Saxonvale, the structure itself should create protections and accountability.

Here are 5 important things a Community Benefit Society can’t do:

1. It can’t operate for private profit
Mayday legally exists for community benefit, not personal gain.

2. It can’t give larger investors more control
Every member gets one vote, regardless of how much they invest.

3. It can’t distribute surplus for private gain
Any surplus generated must be reinvested back into the Society’s purpose.

4. It can’t simply sell off community assets
The Society has an asset lock designed to protect long-term community benefit.

5. It can’t operate without democratic governance
A Community Benefit Society is accountable to its members and operates under democratic rules.

That is why the structure matters.

Unfortunately, you cannot always rely on good intentions alone, luckily a Community Benefit Society is designed so you don’t have to.

It's designed to protect community benefit, community assets and keep long-term value rooted locally.

And perhaps most importantly, it allows us to raise community shares so we can all have a real say and a real stake in the future of our town.

Because it's our town, our Saxonvale, let's own it!

08/05/2026

Mayday response to site finally being placed on the market.

Regeneration, NOT disposal!
💰Saxonvale is now officially on the market.
After months of delay, Somerset Council has launched the sale process for the site through CBRE. We are now reviewing the documentation in detail and will launch our community share offer once this is complete.
What is striking from the published material is that Saxonvale has been framed primarily as a land disposal exercise focused on “best consideration”, rather than any mention of regeneration.
Saxonvale is one of the most important brownfield sites in Somerset.
As Somerset Council Leader Bill Revans stated, the site is being brought to market “to secure best consideration” through a “transparent, competitive process”.
Yet there is no clear regeneration framework, no social value criteria and no indication of how wider outcomes for Frome will be assessed:
❌ No published regeneration brief
❌ No social value framework
❌ No published evaluation criteria around wider outcomes
❌ No clear vision for community infrastructure, cultural space or long-term stewardship
❌ No indication of how proposals will be assessed against wider economic, environmental or social outcomes for Frome
Councils are legally able to consider wider economic, social and environmental benefits when disposing of public land. Regeneration is about more than achieving the highest possible financial return.
Saxonvale is not simply a housing site or a piece of land to be disposed of. It is a 12-acre opportunity to reshape Frome town centre for the long-term.
This is not how other major regeneration sites across Somerset have been approached.
Frome deserves more than just a land transaction.
Our town, our community, and future generations deserve better.
We have all waited far too long to see this site developed.
But development alone is not enough.
Ownership determines outcomes: How Saxonvale is delivered, who benefits from the development and where the value goes matters.
Saxonvale should deliver homes, jobs, culture, enterprise and community spaces in a way that keeps value rooted in Frome for the long term, creating a thriving, connected town centre that puts people, place and long-term value before profit.
We remain ready to participate in the process.
We firmly believe that a community-owned, community-led model is the best way to deliver what our community needs. If you believe that too, please pre-register for our community share offer and encourage others to do the same: https://maydaysaxonvale.co.uk/community-share-offer/
Let's own it. See less

Community Share Offer We’re inviting you to become a co-owner of the Saxonvale site, through our newly incorporated Mayday Saxonvale Community Benefit Society (CBS).  You will have the opportunity to purchase shares in our CBS, which would own and develop the Saxonvale site. Our previous funding ...

30/01/2026

An opportunity to do what's right for Frome. A not for profit development that can offer 30% (or more) social rented and shared ownership homes hopefully with a priority for local people. The social rented homes freehold held by FACLT remaining in perpetuity as social rented for future generations of Frome. Providing much needed commercial space jobs for local people and community assets including a riverside park and community space. Mayday Saxonvale The alternative a profit based development minimum social rented and no community space, reduced commercial space !! What would be your choice ?

Our aim is to acquire the Saxonvale site in for long-term community benefit. 🪂

In November 2025 we made an alternative offer to Somerset Council to purchase the site. We have been waiting for confirmation from the Council whether they would move forward with our offer, or if Saxonvale would be put on the open market.

The Council has now confirmed that they will proceed with an open market sale, and that we are welcome to submit a bid alongside other parties.

📣 Community Share Offer Launch

We are continuing to prepare our Community Share Offer. The final timing depends on when the Council formally begins the site sale. When that process begins, the Council will issue a Sales Pack that sets out how bidding will work and the timescales involved.

Unfortunately the Council has delayed launching this process and has not yet confirmed when it will begin.

In the meantime, we have secured funding from the Reach Fund to carry out an independent valuation of the site. This will help ensure our bid is realistic, well evidenced and ready to move forward as soon as the sale process opens.

We’ll keep you updated as soon as timings are confirmed, but we’re currently planning for a late February launch.

🔓 Local Community Private Investment Period

Ahead of the public launch, we will open a short private investing period for our local community. This gives you, our community who are closest to the project time to digest the information fully, be part of the early momentum and help set the pace for the wider raise.

👉 If you’d like to be part of the early phase, you can register your interest with no obligation:
https://maydaysaxonvale.co.uk/

Our town. Our Saxonvale. Let’s own it. 🪂

Photo by Garfield Austin, Fabulous Frome

Frome Area Community Land Trust Co-operatives UK Community Shares Unit Social Investment Business

21/01/2026

Last night we held a successful AGM with speakers Paul Oster and Anita Collier from Mayday Board. With the stepping down of John-Sebastian Clarke as chair Tim Cutting and Delia Goddard were named as Co-Chairs of FACLT.

Tim and Delia outlined the plans for FACLT over the coming year. Delia spoke of “measured optimism” and “how we are moving into a patience phase of our existence" Tim spoke of with the hoped for success of Mayday we are at a “pivotal point needing to be prepared” alongside exploring how we can work with developers in achieving the social homes needed in Frome.
FACLT will continue to focus on our Primary Purpose – to remain
viable so that we can continue to identify opportunities to provide homes for social rent.

1. In our continued search for land to provide homes for social rent we will work to strengthen our existing connections with Somerset Council, Frome Town Council, Mayday Saxonvale and other organisations that share our aspirations and values.
2. We will raise sufficient funds to cover our core costs and to remain operational.

Anita Collier spoke with real feeling about her hopes for Saxonvale in a very personal speech “Taking you back”

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PIjbmlgC6AkBMu9Zf5KiEzQqPxeV1NxqhCXA1UyxSHk/edit?usp=sharing

Paul Oster outlined plans for the launch in mid February of a community share offer with the ambition to place a bid for the site.

So despite the weather a good attendance with some interesting and thoughtful discussion around a number of areas: raising funds for FACLT, the continuing housing crisis and impact on families in Frome, building relationships with developers and how we attract broader membership particularly young people.

If you are interested in actively supporting us in achieving our objectives or have skills which may help us please get in touch : [email protected]

16/01/2026

We have FACLT AGM on 20 January there is still time to join FACLT and come along we hope to have a director from Mayday to talk about their latest plans including their fundraiser. We will also be setting out our plans for 2026 and would be interested to hear from members about your views and any questions you may have.

If you join by Monday we will send you details of the AGM and meeting for members. Thanks

Become a Member Become a member for just £1… For a minimum of £1 you can buy a share which makes you a member, you can of course purchase as many shares as you like and any extra contributions are welcome although we operate on a one member one vote basis. We are a Community […]

28/11/2025

The rapid rise of renters in their 60's ....

It is often assumed that people of retirement age will no longer have housing costs to cover. But for a significant and growing group, this is far from the case

14/11/2025

No fault evictions to be banned from May 2026 ...

The government confirms timeline for reforms to England’s rental market, including ending bidding wars.

30/10/2025

We applaud the decision that has led to the law providing greater rights to tenants which has been passed...putting renters first.

The sweeping set of reforms mean landlords will no longer be able to carry out so-called 'no-fault' evictions and so cannot get rid of tenants without good reason.

25/10/2025

Yesterday Somerset Executive Committee made the decision
to place the Saxonvale site onto the open market. They believe this
will take four months but at that point the council will be open to
offers subject to best value. The council will continue with discussions with Mayday and a meeting has been planned in the next two weeks. Despite this decision we remain hopeful and committed to the Mayday Saxonvale proposals for the site which offers the best value for our town.

Read our statement to the committee:

22/10/2025

Statement from Mayday Saxonvale

Saxonvale. A fair way forward.

Ahead of the Council’s Extraordinary Executive Meeting this Friday (24 October, 11 am), we are offering the Council an updated approach for the purchase of Saxonvale, which reflects the current market realities while protecting public value and keeping the regeneration project on track.

With the unforeseen delays of our initial funding partner, we’ve worked tirelessly to honour the structure of the original deal. However, replicating the full or substantial upfront land payment that this deal provided for has not been possible.

The Council has confirmed the door is not closed and has agreed to meet in the weeks following the Executive Committee meeting. We will put forward our revised proposal as a starting point for discussions, an approach that gives Mayday the ability to progress detailed planning and unlock further investment.

We are seeking a structure that works for the Council, for our community, and for investors who want to see this project succeed.

Saxonvale has been a contention for years and years because no other developer could bring forward a truly mixed-use development that delivers what our community needs.

Selling to a private developer now would only repeat the same cycle as before.

After land and profit are taken, there simply isn’t enough value left to fund the affordable housing, workspace, community assets, and public realm that our town needs.

Our not-for-profit model is the only way to deliver that ambition. A genuine mix of homes, workspaces, public spaces, and community facilities, aligned with the Council’s own Local Plan and the town’s priorities – a true regeneration project we can all be proud of.

There’s still time to make this work – if we work together.