The Exeter Development Fund is an innovative funding solution that will give Exeter and its communities sole control over how the city is developed. Exeter City Futures has been awarded £840k from Central Government (MHCLG, One Public Estate) to support development of the replicable concept and take it to the market UK-wide. This funding will be used to support the development of new communities using land, expertise and collaboration from the ECF public sector board member organisations in the city.
The tool creates a financing source for the city to self-develop to sustainable, carbon-free communities that people can afford to live in and, hence, change the way it delivers its built environment from the foundations up: we can’t add in carbon-free technology solutions effectively unless the built environment is designed to do so.
Our approach explores home/energy/transport provision as a combined service serves to foster a culture where residents ‘buy into their community’ rather than the traditional bricks and mortar ownership pressure under which the existing UK housing market labours. Additionally, with no private sector shareholders, the tool’s proposed finance structure is able to recycle its surpluses into future development projects that truly create sustainable communities such as active travel networks, car-free neighbourhoods, renewably powered homes and community facilities.
Find out more here.