The Children’s Allotment is a newly established, inclusive, parent-run, outdoor childcare co-operative on the site of a disused plant nursery in the heart of Oxford’s East Ward Allotments. Co-operative Futures got involved when the Children’s Allotment’s founders applied for grant support from the Bright Ideas (Power to Change) programme. We helped the founders consider which form of co-op structure would suit them best, get ready to register the co-op, and make a detailed application for significant further grant support. The group is now going from strength to strength pursuing its unique vision for a new kind of ‘nursery’ that provides an inclusive outdoor education space for the local community.
We were really grateful to receive support from Co-op Futures. Having this support really helped us move things on more quickly than if we’d had to navigate the process of registering ourselves. The mixture of whole group meetings and 1-2-1 support was really helpful. They are incredibly knowledgeable about the different options open to us and helped demystify the complexities of cooperatives. Thanks – Alice Hemming, co-founder