Our Mission Statement
We are a fledgling organisation working to connect landowners with land workers in order to revitalise the Welsh countryside. Our primary goal is to create a network of low-impact, land-based communities across Wales, using the Welsh Government’s One Planet Development (OPD) planning policy as a vehicle for change.
OPD enables individuals to create smallholdings in the open countryside, provided they meet rigorous criteria relating to zero-carbon housing, biodiversity net gain, sustainable land-based livelihoods, and ecological footprint monitoring. OPD offers one of the few viable and affordable alternatives to conventional lifestyles shaped by a global economic model driven by consumption rather than production — a model that has pushed us beyond our planet’s ecological limits.
We are currently looking to purchase 20 to 100 acres of land in Monmouthshire that can be divided into freehold plots for individuals seeking to apply for OPD planning permission. We are open to both bare agricultural land and sites with existing farmhouses and ancillary buildings.
As our membership grows, we intend to expand beyond Monmouthshire—supporting new communities in other Welsh counties where there is demonstrated interest. This phase will depend on demand and the successful registration of future members within targeted regions.
Our long-term ambition is to become a fully registered with the Financial Conduct Authority. This would allow us to secure public and private sector investment to purchase larger areas of land collectively. By pooling resources and purchasing land at scale, we aim to reduce individual costs and lower the barriers to entry for those without significant upfront capital.
Ultimately, we hope to offer planning support and advocacy services as part of the land purchase, on a not-for-profit basis. These services would be financed through recycled working capital, creating a regenerative model that operates in perpetuity.
By streamlining the planning process and potentially gaining permission prior to individual plot sales, we aim to unlock mortgage products and reduce the financial risks for those embarking on this lifestyle. In doing so, we can demonstrate the real-world viability of the One Planet approach—not only in terms of its carbon-saving potential, but as a credible response to the UK’s housing, climate, and rural economic crises.
At its heart, our mission is to help people build more meaningful lives in balance with nature—while proving that sustainable rural living is both possible and necessary.