GREEN MSP MEDIA RELEASE For immediate release Friday 13th May, 2005 GREEN MSP BACKS NEW FIFE HOUSING CONCEPT: CO-HOUSING CAN HELP REBUILD AND SUSTAIN COMMUNITIES Mark Ruskell, Green MSP for Mid Scotland & Fife has expressed his strong support for an innovative Fife housing project which seeks to develop the concept of co-housing to meet the needs of older people. The North East Fife based Vivarium project, which features in a major housing conference taking place today at Glasgow Caledonian University seeks to enable older people to collaborate in developing appropriate co-housing with the aim of enabling residents to live in affordable, environmentally friendly accommodation and to provide mutual support for each other, while continuing to enjoy a sense of dignity, independence and self-worth. Giving the keynote address to the conference MSP Mark Ruskell, Green speaker on the Environment, and Deputy Convenor of the Parliament Environment & Rural Development Committee will highlight the many social, economic, and environmental benefits to be gained from development of the co-housing model, which is popular in North America and Scandinavia, and already accounts for as much as 8% of housing stock in Denmark, where the concept originated. Commenting on his involvement and support for the conference Mark Ruskell said: "I am delighted to be raising awareness of the advantages of co-housing at a time when we need to rebuild our communities more than ever. Co-housing is the perfect balance between community support and independent living, it really puts people first, saving members money, reducing isolation and enabling people themselves to design the houses and communities that they want. Co-housing is a very attractive option for older people who need support as well autonomy and with a population that is ageing we need to find ways to empower older people to support each other within a wider community. Speaking about the Vivarium project in North East Fife - one of the co-housing case studies at the conference - Mr Ruskell continued: "Vivarium is a fantastic project and could be the first co-housing project in Scotland, it is exactly the kind of vibrant community that many people would like to retire to. We face a housing crisis in Fife and co-housing is just the kind of innovative approach that has helped to solve similar crises in countries such as Denmark, hopefully the conference will spur organisations such as Communities Scotland and the Scottish Executive to understand co-housing better and see clear advantages to assisting projects like Vivarium to get up and running." Mr Ruskell has tabled a motion in parliament to raise awareness about the benefits of co-housing amongst MSP colleagues and calling on the Scottish Executive to help stimulate the creation of co-housing projects in Scotland. End For further information contact Green MSP press Office on 0771 7618771 or Andrew Thompson on 07881 846984 Notes to Editors 1. For further details about the Vivarium project contact Anne Pattullo on 01337 858236, or email vivarium@onetel.net 2. The full text of Mark Ruskell's Parliamentary motion is as follows: Short Title: Co-Housing S2M-02803 Mr Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green): That the Parliament welcomes the conference to be held at Glasgow Caledonian University, “A Roadmap to Sustainable Co-Housing for Older People – planning the route” for bringing the notable work of co-housing projects to Scotland’s attention; acknowledges the increasing interest in co-housing amongst many Scottish communities, although there are currently no built projects in Scotland; applauds the work of the innovative pilot project, Vivarium, in Fife for its intention to create an affordable, self-managed co-housing project for older people; believes that co-housing projects have the potential to provide positive, co-operative and sustainable community-led housing environments that combine the autonomy of private dwellings with the advantages of community living; further notes that co-housing projects have been well-established, successful and popular in countries such as Denmark, Holland, Aotearoa/New Zealand and the United States of America for many years, and calls on the Scottish Executive to investigate the benefits of co-housing and how support for it can be integrated into wider housing policy. ----------------------------------- Andrew Thompson Parliamentary Assistant to Mark Ruskell MSP Green Constituency Office 24 High Street Dunblane FK15 0AD Phone 01786 820099 FAX 01786 820088 Mobile 07881 846984 home