At the core of community organising is the principle of bringing people together around a shared issue or place, building collective power to take action and overcome social injustice.

This is why it fits so well and could be central to the work of co-ops who also respond to community issues (either in terms of a community of place or community of interest). They do this through their seventh co-operative principle, “concern for the community”.

Community Organisers have worked with a number of co-ops over the years, including Social Action Hub Marsh Farm Outreach, which is a grassroots community co-op operating in Luton since 2005, using organising principles to uncover issues of community importance, mobilise volunteers and develop creative projects, events and spaces.

Another co-operative belonging to the CO network is SEASALT (South-East Students Autonomously Living Together), Brighton’s first student housing co-op. Established in 2018, Seasalt received training and support from CO in its early stages, with activities such as door knocking the area to find out what local residents wanted to see from them as neighbours.

But to ensure co-ops have longevity they need to be able to constantly reach out and listen, which are at the heart of the Community Organising Framework, to connect and develop relationships with their community and build their collective power.

Salford Involved, a community co-operative that runs a community gym is doing this by encouraging local people to participate in the work of the co-op through membership and volunteering giving people a democratic structure that they feel collective ownership and collective responsibility for.

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