Why do 8000 people co-own this regenerative farm?

Fordhall Farm was rescued from developers by thousands of ordinary people, proving that community ownership can turn ‘hopeless’ into a thriving model of sustainable farming

Our Fair Future has teamed up with Antidote to bring you stories of people building a future that works, and they’re doing it in communities just like yours, showing what’s possible when we take charge together.

They said it couldn’t be done. They said it was “hopeless”. But one determined community has proved the doubters spectacularly wrong—saving Fordhall, an organic farm from being swallowed up by industrial developers in a heart-warming triumph of people power.

Against all odds, more than 8,000 ordinary men and women dug deep into their pockets, stumping up £50 or £100 apiece to raise an astonishing £800,000—enough to secure the farm’s future and keep it in organic hands.

The vision? To show Britain—and the world—that farming can be different: natural, sustainable and in tune with the land. Instead of squeezing the soil dry, this project nourishes it. Instead of treating food as a factory product, it cherishes it. And instead of bowing to short-term profit, it looks to the long term.

A decade on, the results speak for themselves. The farm is thriving, resilient and respected as a model for others to follow. Farmers tempted to scoff are invited to see it with their own eyes – and many walk away convinced.

The scheme’s organisers admit they’ve been “overwhelmed” by the response. And it isn’t too late to get involved: for just £50, supporters can buy a lifelong community share (strictly non-profit), volunteer on the land, or simply sign up for the farm’s newsletter.

Proof, if proof were needed, that when communities come together, they can move mountains—or, at the very least, save a farm.

Find out more in the video below.