In the summer of 2024 we reached a milestone and celebrated Old Hall Community’s 50th anniversary with a big party. People who once lived here, past volunteers, family, friends, arrived from all over Europe to meet up, chat and enjoy the weekend ambiance provided by the hardworking current cohort of members. In 2025 two members are all that remain from the founding group that set up Old Hall back in 1974. A different world then, to that of now. The principles however, which were described as being ‘Egalitarian’ and ‘Green’ in 1974, remain the core principles today.
We are a large community of about 60 people who share an old friary, and 65 acres of farmland. We share the workload on the organic farm to be nearly self-sufficient in food and we are constantly reviewing our energy use in order to provide the best balance between affordability and ethical consumerism. Our borehole supplements our mains water use by providing our irrigation system for the vegetable gardens. An agrivoltaic solar PV array supplements our electricity consumption and water and space heating can be achieved through the use of a biomass boiler, gas, oil and ground source heat pump.
All members put capital into the community when they arrive and have their own private space. So a family with one or two children is likely to have four rooms. A single person may have one or two rooms depending on their invested capital. Meals are eaten together in our big communal kitchen/dining room, using our own home grown produce. Meals are prepared and chores done, under our domestic rota job system signed up to by all members and guests present at any one time. The range of food is varied and excellent. Special dietary needs are catered for whenever possible. To make all this happen members and friends do around 15 hours of community work a week which includes milking, cheese making, construction projects, caring for the farm and the machinery, our animals, growing and preserving our vegetables, herbs and fruit, cooking, cleaning, sewing, maintaining the buildings, the orchards and the grounds – and so much more!
Because of this communal commitment, members find that they can only work about three days a week outside the community to bring in enough money to pay the bills. This work life balance, coupled with constantly eating home grown pure organic food brings with it a quality, stress free existence which benefits one’s health no end. We all help and support each other. In the summer months we enjoy help from friends from all over the world who turn up for two week stays to volunteer as a ‘living in community’ experience. We also host and organise our own social events that range from home cinema to open mike nights and games. No community can survive without its regular decision making meetings attended by members. Fifty years have passed and much has changed in the world, but we continue to laugh, love, argue, cook, grow, harvest, build, play and eat together.
