About Laughton Lodge
Laughton Lodge began in 1998, when a group of families and individuals bought a former hospital site on the edge of the village of Laughton in East Sussex and transformed it into 22 homes surrounded by 23 acres of land.
Each household has a private home, held on a long lease, while the land and a number of other buildings are owned and managed collectively as The Community Project Ltd. Each homeowner is a director of the company, and the community is run together through consensus-based decision-making. Decisions are made at monthly meetings, and sub-groups oversee practical areas such as buildings, land, facilities and finances.
How we live
Our way of living is often described as co-housing. This means that homes are private, but we jointly care for the land, shared buildings, rental spaces open to the public, and shared utilities. The community is partially off-grid: heating comes from a wood-chip powered district heating system, water from a naturally filtered underground supply, and a community-owned solar array means the site is often self-sufficient in electricity during summer months. A dedicated high-speed broadband connection is shared across households.
Every Friday evening we gather for a potluck dinner, and throughout the year we celebrate with seasonal events that bring rhythm to community life – including our annual summer party, Christmas cabaret, and a biennial art exhibition showcasing artists and makers from nearby villages and towns.
We also hold monthly work days (or ‘busy days’ – a name given by one of the kids which stuck) where we work together on maintaining the site, often welcoming volunteers who want to experience community living first-hand.
There is no single ideology that defines us. What we share is a commitment to living responsibly, respectfully, and in relationship with one another.
Who lives here?
Laughton Lodge is an intergenerational community, home to around 70 people – from babies to those in their eighties. People come here at all stages of life and tend to stay for many years. Many of us are families, and children are very much at the heart of everyday life.
Our professions and lifestyles are diverse – teachers, artists, doctors, IT specialists, retirees, self-employed, and parents at home – but we share a wish to live in a more connected way, alongside people we know and trust. Some people work from home using the shared offices and work spaces on site. Others commute to Lewes, Brighton or London.
Children grow up here with a rare combination of freedom, nature and community. The 23 acres of shared land – meadows, woodland, ponds, a football pitch, an orchard and gardens – are their playground. They play games, climb trees, look after animals and get very muddy in our lovely Sussex clay! There are always other children around, and trusted adults nearby.
For parents, the community provides a natural support network. Babysitting, shared school runs, community events and the everyday presence of other families for company and support when needed make a real difference to daily life.
Since we began, one generation of children has grown up here and moved on — and now a new generation is building dens and rampaging through the undergrowth. Some of those grown-up children have even found their way back.
Our ethos
At the heart of Laughton Lodge is a simple intention: to live next door to people we know, like and trust.
In practice, this means sharing resources where it makes sense, supporting one another informally in everyday life, and treating each other with respect – even when we disagree.
Close friendships often develop here, among both adults and children, but there’s plenty of space for quieter, more independent lives too. Residents bring a wide range of backgrounds, cultures and experiences, which shape the character of the community over time.
We think carefully about how we can live more sustainably as a community – including through generating solar energy, sharing a biomass heating system, growing food, and maintaining our meadows, woodland and wild spaces to benefit nature and biodiversity. We’re founder members of GENWISE, the UK branch of the Global Ecovillage Network
The land and shared spaces
The land around the homes includes expansive gardens, species-rich meadows, woodland, an orchard, allotments, ponds, workshops, and a herb garden – all maintained and enjoyed together.
At the centre of the site is our main community building: a 1,200 square metre space with a large hall, professional kitchen, dining room, meeting rooms, offices, co-working space, artists’ studios, guest rooms, a kids’ room, a music room and games room. These spaces are used by residents for community and private events (meals, birthday parties, family gatherings, the odd wedding), and are also rented to a wide variety of groups. We regularly host yoga, pilates and dance classes, as well as festivals and retreats.
We also have workshops, a tool pool, and smaller outbuildings used for creative and practical work.
Location
Laughton Lodge sits on the edge of the village of Laughton, in the heart of the Sussex countryside. The village has a primary school, pub, and a thriving village shop and post office, all within walking distance. There are secondary schools in Ringmer (which kids can reach independently by bus), Uckfield and Lewes. We’re surrounded by dark skies and have over 400 acres of woodland on our doorstep.
Despite the rural setting, Laughton is well connected. Lewes and Uckfield are both about 15 minutes’ drive away and have regular train services to London and Brighton. The nearest bus stop is 10 minutes’ walk from the site, with half-hourly services to Lewes, Brighton and Eastbourne. Brighton and the sea are around 30 minutes away by car.
Finding out more
If you’re curious about Laughton Lodge, we’d love to hear from you. Visiting is often the best way to understand whether this kind of place and way of living might suit you.
You’re welcome to get in touch, arrange a visit, or join one of our monthly work days to get a feel for community life first-hand.