Living at SEASALT
*As of 2022 our applications process has changed. Please get in contact with us if you have an interest in SEASALT or any questions :)*
Living with us FAQ
When will rooms be advertised?
Available rooms will be advertised on our social media, students union websites and our website. They will be usually be advertised from October - the end of February every academic year but this is subject to change.
How do I apply?
To apply, you need to fill out the application form and send it to us via email or our social media (see our 'how to 'guide for tips on writing a strong application). Successful applicants from this stage may then be invited to round 2, an interview. Successful applicants from this round will be notified no later then the end of March subject to change. Successful applicants will then need to read and sign the tenancy and house rules!
Help and advice for applicants
Please see our 'Information for Applicants' document. We endeavor to make our house and our application process as accessible as possible. If you need any additional support or want to highlight where we can improve, please send us a message. For help and support writing applications and interviews, see our 'how to' section below.
Why should I live at SEASALT?
Living at SEASALT means that you are contributing to housing justice, shared/public/community ownership and the co-operative economy. SEASALT has many benefits over the private rented sector (landlords and letting agents) such as:
- Affordable rent
- Flexible, long-term contracts - democratic
- Quality, modern housing
- Community and diversity
- Environment and sustainability.
Is SEASALT right for me?
Ask yourself: are you interested in community living, housing co-ops or housing justice? Are you someone that has struggled renting in the private sector or wants to live a more accessible sustainable lifestyle? If so, then SEASALT is perfect for you! It's as simple as that. Our diversity is also one of our biggest strengths and SEASALT gives everyone the space to live learn, grow (not live laugh love haha) in a safe welcoming environment.
what responsibilities and skills can I learn?
Living in a housing co-op gives you lots of opportunities to learn new skills and take on more responsibilities. See our skills section for more information on this. Every member will also be expected to contribute to the co-op and take on a role.
Accessibility
We aim that our house will have step free access from pavement to ground floor and from ground floor to the garden. We will also ensure that all of our events and media are as accessible as possible for example by running alcohol free events or using accessible venues. Because our tenants are in control of the house, it should be easier to make any additional accessibility improvements as necessary.
Equality, diversity, inclusion and welfare
Everyone is welcome at SESALT. Equality, diversity, inclusion and welfare are fundamental principles of the co-operative movement and we endeavor to champion these through whatever we do. We will have robust equality, conflict and welfare policies to minimise issues and resolve them in a fair and professional manner. Most households don't have such extensive plans. Help and support will be provided to all members and confidential talks are available with our dedicated welfare officer.
Living a sustainable lifestyle
Living in a housing co-op empowers tenants to make sustainable lifestyle choices. What's more, our house will be retrofitted to high standards, with insulation, triple glazing and more helping reduce energy loss and our bills! We endeavor to use as many recycled and locally made materials as possible, preferably using local co-ops and organisations, to promote a truly sustainable, circular economy that works for people and planet.
The timeline and application process for prospective tenants/members
Overview of the application process
Rooms will be advertised from October onwards each academic year. You can submit an application for available rooms any time after this!
February for applications with interviews and interview activities taking place in March. Final decisions will be made by the end of March and all applicants will be notified, with feedback if possible, at each stage.
Our interview process now involves and informal, in person meetup. Please get in contact with us to arrange this and feel free to ask any questions!
Timeline of events *Subject to change each year

Look out for our advertisements at the students unions, on their 'career hub' pages, on our social media and of course here, on our website. Please don't hesitate to get in contact with us if you have any questions or can't find the right information.

Write us an email to arrange an in person meetup and give us a short description of why you want to live at SEASALT. An interest in co-ops, housing justice or community living would be a great start!

This is the deadline for applications. We'll start considering candidates after this so unfortunately, if you are late, we might miss you.

Once you've had an interview, we'll let you know by the end of march as to whether you've ben accepted! Successful applicants will then need to sign the tenancy agreement and red the moving in rules and then you can start planning to live at SEASALT. Woooo! If your application was unsuccessful don't worry, it is unlikely that your application was not up to standard but we probably have lot of interest and so allocations will be very difficult to decide. Of course prioirty will also be given to those SEASALT considers 'of housing need' which is explained in the section below.
How to write a strong application + the application process in detail
Overview
The application process consists of:
- An email or message detailing why you want to live in SEASALT
- An informal, in person meetup
Please remember that we would love to offer spaces to everyone that is interested in co-ops and creating a fairer more sustainable world but unfortunately we have limited spaces (only 7 bedrooms at the moment) and so this interview process is designed to help us select new members from those that share our values and aims and who we think would be a best fit for the co-op.
Part 1 – Send us an email or contact us via a dm on social media!
Part 1 is the short email. We want to briefly know why you would like to join/live at SEASALT and what interests you about us, our project and our way of living. This section is really giving us a picture of what motivates you about co-ops, community living, sustainable lifestyles and a fairer more democratic society. We want to know, what people would gain from living at SEASALT, what they would learn and how it would benefit them to live with us as well as how they think they can manage conflict and get along with people! There are no right or wrong answers here but it would be useful to read and research some topics about co-ops and why you like us if you are unsure as to where to start!
Writing a good email
As we have discussed there are no right or wrong answers when you write an application, provided you are passionate or interested in the topics mentioned below. As a starting point therefore, it would be good to research or revise the following areas:
- Co-ops and housing co-ops
- Communal living and why you want to live in SEASALT as oppose to private renting or other forms of housing
- How you would get on with people and manage any potential conflict
- To some extent: Housing Justice, politics, human rights, environment and sustainability
Try and get across these things:
- Your passion, interest and/or knowledge of these subjects
- Any relevant work, campaign or volunteering experience you might have (we find it really interesting to hear about people’s activism!)
- Your lived experience of these areas – what is your experience of private renting? Did you grow up in a low income area that was hugely affected by politics?
- Why would SEASALT benefit you and what stands out about us?
- What skills you already have and what you would like to learn or improve upon.
- What you could bring to an autonomous housing setup where you might be given a little more responsibility.
Please note: no experience or prior knowledge is necessary to make a strong application, your passion enthusiasm and commitment to improving your understanding is what really counts! Letting us know what interests you and what you would like to take part in are good things to get across to us.
Write in your own style and what feels the most authentic and informative way to you. We won’t be judging applications on their formatting, spelling, grammar or other similar areas. Just the content.
Resources:
- Co-ops UK: https://www.uk.coop/
- Wellbeing economics: https://neweconomics.org/campaigns/wellbeing
- Who Owns England: https://whoownsengland.org/
- Student co-op homes: https://www.studenthomes.coop/
- Community led homes: https://www.communityledhomes.org.uk/what-housing-co-operative
- Radical Routes: https://www.radicalroutes.org.uk/
- Brighton and Hove Community Land Trust (BHCLT – our partners): https://bhclt.org.uk/
- Our website!
If you have any further questions about this section then please get in contact with us.
Part 2 – Meetup!
Part 2, The meetup will be with current members of SEASALT Housing co-op and would usually take place at the co-op or a neutral venue that is accessible to the applicant. However, as with the current circumstances (at the time of writing) in 2022, this could take place may take place online via Zoom, Teams, Jitsi or similar. This will be communicated to all applicants so don’t worry and if you have any accessibility issues relating to this then please drop us a message and let us know.
People at the co-op will want to get to know you as a person but they might ask you some formal questions about:
- Co-ops
- Communal living and why you want to live in SEASALT as oppose to private renting or other forms of housing
- How you would get on with people and manage any potential conflict
- To some extent: Housing Justice, politics, human rights, environment and sustainability
Don’t worry, we will try to make this process as informal and relaxed as possible, we mostly want to get to know you as a person and how you weill fit into our co-op and its slightly different lifestyle. Re-read the information in the above paragraph about section 1, part 2 for some advice on what kind of topics to research and information/passions to get across. Remember, this stage only exists to allow us to make a difficult choice out of the remaining candidates – we have limited spaces and unfortunately we can’t offer a room to everyone who loves co-ops, as much as we’d like to. We are likely to have a lot of strong candidates and hopefully this information will help put you at ease before you meet us.
Tips for the meetup
Relax and be yourself, everyone is different and deals with social situations in different ways. We know this and we much prefer to get to know people in a relaxed and accessible way, helping them to feel comfortable if we can.
Successful applicants – induction + signing the tenancy agreement and house rules
If you’ve made it this far then congratulations! You’ve not got long to go now (whoop!). The final steps are to read the tenancy agreement, the community charter and all of the rules/policies. You need to then sign the tenancy and community charter and send them to us (if you agree with them of course) – NB: the tenancy agreement contains a clause asking you to confirm that you have read and agree with all of the rules/policies which is why you do not need to sign them each individually/separately.
What happens next? – Confirmation and induction process
Confirmation: Once you have sent us your signed tenancy agreement, that’s it you’re officially a prospective member and tenant of SEASALT Housing co-operative! Rest assured we can’t wait to meet you, get to know you and welcome you in to our house to come live with us next year (or whenever you move in!). You will now be sent an email or letter to confirm, in writing, that you have been accepted as a prospective tenant/member.
Induction process: After confirmation, you will be sent your induction materials. This will include:
- A copy of the tenancy and the members/tenants handbook (which will include all of the rules and additional information for all of our tenants/members) .
- Information about our buddy scheme and the option to have a buddy/mentor for 6 weeks+ when you move in.
- Information about and contact details of our welfare officer, our equality, diversity and inclusion policies and a personalised welfare plan. The welfare plan is optional and you can include as much or as little information as you like. It will only be viewed by the welfare officer and can be edited at any time – even after you move in.
- Information about our member roles, which roles you might be able to take and confirmation of what responsibilities will be expected of you when you move in. Don’t worry, roles are just a contribution to the house and the co-operative or community spirit. We don’t except anyone to treat them like a full time job (unless they want too) and there might be a slight variance in the workload between roles simply because of each roles nature and any unforeseen circumstances.
NB: We are still preparing some of these materials so these are subject to our current progress!
I wasn’t successful what can I do?
If you weren’t successful don’t worry, we will hopefully be able to provide you with some feedback on your application and add you to our waiting list for the next available vacancy that we have. Rest assured we would love to provide accommodation to everyone that needs it but we have limited spaces. You’re always welcome to stay in contact, meet our members and support our campaigns!
Volunteering for SEASALT
Currently, the main way to get involved with SEASALT is to join the working group whose aim is to set up SEASALT Housing Co-operative. We meet every 2 weeks to discuss project updates and assign tasks depending on members’ capacity. We have additional meetings every 2 weeks with our partner organisation – BHCLT.
SEASALT is inviting new student members for the 2020-21 academic year to join the working group.
We hope to encourage students who would like to live in the co-op to join our working group and help us set up SEASALT. We anticipate that demand for rooms in our house will be high, so we will probably select members based on the length of their volunteering with SEASALT in case there is not enough space.
Information and documents for potential members















Why should I get involved in SEASALT?
Read what some of our members and supporters have to say.
"I was drawn to the co-op movement after my experience working for a housing law clinic.
I've seen first hand the state that people are being left in. Joining SEASALT was a natural progression for me to improve housing access and justice within the Brighton and Hove area." - Matt Baldwin, Committee member
Matt Baldwin - Committee Member
"The Government and universities have really shafted students in the past year, especially in terms of rent rebates.
Half of young people's disposable incomes often go on houses that are unsuitable and unsafe. It made me think: is there a way I can live that's fairer, more sustainable and more affordable?" - Tom Green, Committee member
Tom Green - Committee Member
"Hearing more about SEASALT is so inspiring. They are leading the way tackling a really huge problem of exorbitant rents, unresponsive landlords and poor quality student housing at the source.
I am really proud that the first student led housing cooperative in the South East will be in Brighton. I hope its profile will increase so more students take the initiative to set up housing co-operatives" around the country. - Caroline Lucas, MP, Brighton Pavillion
Caroline Lucas - MP, Brighton Pavillion
"It is no secret that we face a housing crisis, both across our city and our country, and that young people face the sharp end of it. A young people's housing cooperative is a fantastic initiative that will help ensure we are not pricing young people out of Brighton. The cooperative's values are in line with Council objectives and this innovative, affordable housing initiative, which will be owned by the community, is exactly the sort of thing we should be encouraging across our city." - LLoyd Russell Moyle, MP, Brighton Kemptown
LLoyd Russell Moyle - MP, Brighton Kemptown
"On a personal note, it was really inspiring hearing about your goals and what you’ve already done. It really does reinvigorate my hope levels for Our Planet seeing people acting as you are – great job!" - Sebastian Howarth, Business development executive @ Compare your Footprint
Sebastian Howarth - Business development executive @ Compare your Footprint
"There are thousands of individuals and families trapped in unsustainable housing situations because of the disastrous disconnect between wages and average rents in the city." - Brighton and Hove Community Land Trust in the Financial Times
Brighton and Hove Community Land Trust
What can I get involved in?
Forming partnerships
Form partnerships with other coops and organisations both locally and nationally to fulfill our aims and support common goals and values i.e rent strikes, sustainability research etc
Community engagement
Build support for coops and our housing coop by engaging with the local community, writing and interviewing for local media, talking to students and demonstrating the benefits of the coop model.
Campaigns and Awareness
Take part in local and national coop and housing justice campaigns (plus any others that our members support). Raise awareness of student led housing co-operatives via our website, social media, zine-making, writing articles and speaking at events.
Policy Development
We need to draft our policy documents such as our diversity and inclusion policy, negotiate a lease and democratically make the rules that SEASALT tenants will abide by. There are opportunities for anyone to get to grips with the process of buying a house and its documentation.
Finance and Accounting
In 2020, we completed our share offer raising over £335,000 from more than 100 investors. The work doesn't stop here though, we still need a treasurer as well as people to help us budget future projects and things like digital marketing or the design of our dream house.
Meetings and Decision Making
We have bi weekly meetings at SEASALT and with BHCLT (alternating). Each week we have people volunteer to chair meetings, take meeting minutes and write up action points. We need to make decisions, relay and communicate information and implement + agree on policy with BHCLT.
Support & Training
Project Manager
Full support from the SEASALT Project Manager (funded through Homes England Community Led Homes programme)
Specialised Training
The opportunity to attend specialised training sessions to develop skills and knowledge
Co-operative Network
Wider support from the Co-operative network including Students for Co-operation, Student Co-op Homes, Co-ops UK, Brighton & Hove Community Land Trust (BHCLT), Mutual Aid in Sussex (MAIS) and local housing co-operatives.
CV
Great experience for your CV and the provision of a reference and a certificate of completed volunteer hours
Socials
Regular volunteer socials
The First
A unique transformative opportunity to set up the first student housing co-operative in the South East.
Skills Gained
- Budgeting & Accounting
- Delegation
- Written & Verbal Communication
- Negotiation
- Organisation & Planning
- Leadership
- Teamwork
- Consensus Decision Making
- Time Management
- Marketing & Social Media
- Problem Solving
- Decision Making
- Public Speaking
- Active Listening
- Conflict Resolution
- Knowlegde of Housing/Property Law