COMMUNITY SHARE OFFER | INVESTMENT OPEN
Our town
Our Saxonvale
Let’s own it
Frome’s last major regeneration opportunity is now on the open market. Together we can prove there is a better way to deliver regeneration – keeping long-term value rooted locally.
12 acres
Town centre brownfield site
£1.2m
Government backed funding
£900k
Min. community share target
£2.1m
Min. total funding package
|THE OPPORTUNITY
The future of Frome starts with us
Saxonvale is our last major town centre regeneration opportunity: 12 acres in the heart of our town that will shape Frome for generations to come. What happens here matters. Not just what gets built, but who owns it, who benefits and where the long-term value goes.
The impact of this moment reaches far beyond Frome. Together, we can prove communities can take a leading role in owning and shaping the places they live: creating a national blueprint for community-led regeneration and local ownership.
By investing in Saxonvale, we can build a lasting legacy for our community and invest in the future of communities everywhere.
|AT A GLANCE
Own the future
of our town
We need to raise a minimum of £900k through community shares to help bring Saxonvale into community ownership.
Alongside £1.2m already committed through the Resonance Community Developers Fund, creating a minimum £2.1m funding package, backing a serious community-led bid for the site.
What happens in Saxonvale will shape the future of our town for generations. It has the opportunity to showcase what community-led development can look like for towns across the UK.
|KEY DETAILS
Community Share Offer
Investment is now open!
Investment TARGET
Minimum community raise
£900k
Secured funding*
£1.2m
Total Min. funding package
£2.1m
* £1.2 million already committed through the Resonance Community Developers Fund, backed by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Investment levels
Minimum
For pre-registered supporters
£250
Maximum individual
£50k
Maximum organsation
£100k
Investment PERIOD
Investment launch
8 June
Share offer closes
30 September
Become a member.
Join Mayday Saxonvale Community Benefit Society and help bring Saxonvale into community ownership keeping value within our town.
Shape the future of our town.
Every member has one vote, regardless of investment size. Elect members to the Board and stand for election.
Earn Interest.
Target return of 5% interest per annum and may request withdrawal of shares from Year 5 onwards. (Not guaranteed.)
Who can invest.
Individuals aged 16+.
UK residents and international (exc. USA and Canada residents). Organisations including companies, charities and community groups
Committed £1.2 million funding.
Secured social impact lending through the Resonance Community Developers Fund backed by The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Mayday Saxonvale Community Benefit Society.
Registered with the Financial Conduct Authority and is a member of Co-operatives UK.
Secured grant funding support.
Through the Reach Fund and Community Shares Booster Programme
Awarded the Community Shares Standard Mark. Recognising that our share offer meets national standards of good practice.
Community shares are a high-risk investment. You could lose some or all of your money. Please read all documentation before investing.
This share offer gives us the chance to do better. Not just a different plan for this site, but a different way of doing development altogether. One that keeps long-term value in our community.
|SAXONVALE SHARES
What your investment makes possible
Your investment will help fund a competitive bid to bring Saxonvale into community ownership and unlock the next stage of development.
Together, we can create:
- Affordable homes for future generations
- Spaces for local businesses, makers and jobs
- Public and cultural spaces designed around people
- Long-term community ownership and stewardship
- Value reinvested back into Frome, not extracted from it
Unlike conventional development models, community ownership allows long-term value created at Saxonvale to stay rooted locally: strengthening our town for generations to come.
|WHY COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP
Ownership determines outcomes
Traditional development models are driven by short-term returns. When viability tightens, affordable homes, employment space and community infrastructure are often the first things reduced.
Our model is different.
As a Community Benefit Society, we exist to create long-term community benefit. Instead of extracting profit, surpluses can be reinvested into the site, community assets and the future of our town.
This is about more than development. It is about long-term stewardship, democratic ownership and giving communities a real stake in the future of the places they live.
Our vision: A thriving Saxonvale owned and shaped by our community, building long-term resilience, opportunity and belonging for Frome – setting a national blueprint for community-led placemaking and local control.
|WHAT WE ARE BUILDING
A masterplan our community deserves
Saxonvale should be a community, not a development. Our policy-compliant, community-led masterplan will regenerate a brownfield site into a genuine, mixed-use town centre extension with lasting community benefit.
A mixed-use, town centre regeration project
10,000+ sqm of commercial & community space
Minimum 30% affordable homes
Community-owned assets
Green infrastructure & placemaking
Historic preservation and retro-fitting
Serious plans. Real backing.
We are not opposing development. We are proving it can be delivered differently. Over the past five years, Mayday Saxonvale has brought together a professional technical team, experienced in delivering complex regeneration projects, along with a dedicated board to bring forward a deliverable regeneration project for Saxonvale.
Key partners include Stories, one of the UK’s leading purpose-led regeneration companies, Studio Saar Architects, Frome Area Community Land Trust, Abri Housing Association and specialist consultants across planning, engineering, transport, valuation and development finance.
Saxonvale isn’t just a development. It’s a place that will build long-term resilience, opportunity and a sense of belonging for our town, for generations to come.
|YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED
FAQs
What happens if Mayday doesn’t secure the site?
If our bid is not accepted by Somerset Council, investment funds will be returned.
Is my investment protected?
No. Community shares are a high-risk investment and you could lose some or all of your money. This investment is not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
Will I earn interest on my investment?
The Society is targeting up to 5% annual interest, but this is not guaranteed and depends on the success of the project.
Can I get my money back?
Investors can request withdrawal of shares from Year 5 onwards, subject to Board approval and available funds. Community shares cannot be sold or traded.
What do investors receive?
Investors become members of Mayday Saxonvale Community Benefit Society with one vote regardless of investment size, plus the opportunity to help shape the future of Saxonvale.
Why community ownership?
Community ownership means long-term value can stay rooted in Frome, with surpluses reinvested into the site and future community benefit rather than extracted for private shareholders.
Who can invest?
Anyone aged 16+ can invest, including individuals, companies, charities and community organisations. International investors can also invest (excluding USA and Canada residents). While the project is rooted in Frome, anyone eligible can invest and support a national model for community-led development and local ownership.
|THE TIME IS NOW
Be a part of what happens next
It’s our town. Our Saxonvale. Let’s own it.
Fill out below form to keep up to date with what’s happening with the project and receive our share offer documents straight into your inbox.
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Community shares are a high-risk investment. You could lose some or all of your money. Please read all the documents before investing.