CCH was pleased to facilitate a visit by the Maltese government recently to show how co-operatives in the UK operate and how they can be a solution to some of their housing challenges. Made particularly special as we are currently celebrating the UN’s International Year of Co-operatives.
Hon Minister Roderick Galdes, responsible for the Ministry for Social and Affordable Accommodation, came over with a delegation including the Malta Co-operative Federation, for a fact-finding mission to observe successful co-operative housing initiatives firsthand. The Maltese government are currently looking at a potential 30-50 unit pilot project to provide affordable community led social housing on an island where the housing landscape has been problematic for some time.
The delegation visited five co-operatives on the South Bank in London – Redwood, Iroko, Palm and Mulberry. Hosted by Coin Street Community Builders, it included a meeting with Clare Solomon, Chair of Redwood, in their amazing board room overlooking the Thames where the Chair outlined some of the practicalities of running a housing co-operative.
This was followed by a roundtable to discuss community led housing models, financing, land acquisition and operations, to assist the Maltese Ministers consider the options for their potential project. Representatives at the roundtable included the MHCLG, CCH, Coin Street, CDS Co-operatives, Bunker and Minster Housing Co-operatives, along with the Co-operative Party and Co-operatives UK.
Blase Lambert said “As in the UK, affordable housing is a real issue in Malta. We were pleased to be able to showcase the different types of co-operative housing models available here, and internationally, so that the Maltese government can now go back and consider which model would be suitable for them to adapt to their potential pilot.”
Our thanks go to Coin Street Community Builders for hosting the visit.
Edit: Since the visit, the Malta Co-operative Federation has engaged with officials from the Ministry for Social and Affordable Accommodation and their advisors. They have now been tasked with producing a feasibility study to assess the viability of this novel model of Co-operative Housing for Malta. CCH is pleased to be able to continue assisting them with this project.