Next gathering
The dates for the next gathering will be
13th – 16th August 2026
This is a three-day gathering. This gathering will be blended with digital access to all main meetings and workshops relating to agenda items.
NOTE: Only Radical Routes delegates need to arrive on Thursday for Friday’s budget setting day. New people/groups do not need to come until Friday evening as per the usual 2 day gatherings.
Venue:
Nr Brighton
Hosts:
Out of Town and Gatherings and Access Working Group
Purpose of Gatherings
Radical Routes business – decision-making and discussion, reporting on work done and allocating tasks to do
Introduction to how RR works and how to participate in it
Keeping up with each other’s co-op news – meeting new members, helping with problems, celebrating achievements
Socialising, skill-sharing, inspiring each other – building relationships of trust so we can work together well
Meeting new people and spreading consciousness of radical co-operation as a tool for re-making our world.
Who can come?
Gatherings are open to everyone:
Delegates of member co-ops
Other co-op members, associates and friends who want to participate in the network
People from new or existing co-ops who are interested in joining
Random other visitors or interested people.
What happens there?
Delegates of member co-ops need to attend business meetings on behalf of their co-ops
Anyone at a gathering can attend any meeting
There are workshops (consensus decision-making, facilitation, how to set up a workers co-op), trainings, discussions
at a physical gathering, there are lots of things to do outside meetings: putting up and taking down marquees, hanging out, food prep, kids group, queer space, banner-making, etc.
attending gatherings online, some gatherings offer support for blended access, with business meetings and workshops accessible via online video link and space to socialise on DiscordNew groups should attend the ‘New Groups’ meeting, and new people should attend the introductory sessions
Gatherings are usually quite intense, with lots of people trying to share a lot of information and make lots of decisions in a relatively small amount of time. If you particularly want to communicate with a specific person you don’t know, feel free to ask someone who knows what’s going on for help.
REGISTER HERE:
Use this link to register:
Registration deadline:
5pm August 3rd 2026
It is super important that you register on time so that the right amount of food can be bought and beds can be allocated according to need.
Also, The earlier we know about any access/accommodation needs you have, the easier it is for us to help!
Online Access:
Online access to meetings and workshops:
This gathering will be blended, with digital access to all main meetings and workshops relating to agenda items.
All meeting links can be found on the Team Up calendar, HERE
Online pre-gathering POC huddle:
There will be meet-ups for People of Colour during the Gathering, and there will also be a pre-Gathering POC Huddle at 6pm on Wednesday 5 August, on Zoom. If you’re coming to the Gathering and you’re a person of colour, you will be very welcome! You can ask for a link to the online Huddle when you fill out the Gatherings registration form (above). If you’ve already registered, then please ask for a link through the enquiries page.
There will also be an in person huddle at the gathering – see venue information below.
Venue Information
Venue Details:- Laughton Lodge, Common Lane, Lewes, BN8 6BY
Laughton Lodge began in 1998, when a group of families and individuals bought a former hospital site on the edge of the village of Laughton in East Sussex and transformed it into 22 homes surrounded by 23 acres of land. The land around the homes includes expansive gardens, species-rich meadows, woodland, an orchard, allotments, ponds, workshops, and a herb garden – all maintained and enjoyed together. Laughton Lodge is an intergenerational community. Around 70 people live here, from babies to those in their eighties. People come here at all stages of life and tend to stay for many years. Many of them are families, and children are very much at the heart of everyday life.
Arrival Times and Budget setting: This is a budget setting gathering so only delegates from RR co-ops who are participating in Friday’s workshops need to arrive on Thursday afternoon/Friday morning. If you are not participating in the budget setting workshops, you do not need to arrive until Friday afternoon (4pm onwards).
Accommodation & Park up: Most accommodation is camping (bring your tent!) but there are also a limited number of indoor rooms and some pre pitched bell tents available. These will be allocated on the basis of need, please email gatherings@radicalroutes.org.uk and also let us know on the registration form if you need an alternative to camping. There is another event being set up at the venue on Sunday, so all tents need to be taken down and the camping field cleared by 10am.
Access information from site visit by Out of Town:
It’s about a 100m walk from the car parking to the main building, along a paved flat access road. The road has speed bumps, but there’s a gap on one side for chairs on the large set of bumps, and the smaller ones look small enough to cross ok. If you need any help carrying your bags to and from your transport to the venue, please state this on the registration form.. The children who live in the
community also want to offer to help with bags for a bit of pocket money. If you get stuck email gatherings@radicalroutes.org.uk
The camping field is a 300m walk from the main building along a field with a gate and a duck-under fence and some rougher ground just as you enter. There’s a moderate slope up to the field. As a guide, when we visited, one person with us had sprained their ankle recently and was using a stick, they managed the trip with no issue. Access might be possible in a powered chair as long as there’s been no rain recently, but you can also stay in one of the rooms in the house if you’re a chair user.
The six compost loos on the camping field have a step up to them, and the nearby sinks are positioned assuming you can stand to use them. The area near the toilets is in use as office space, so we need to be quiet, but it’s well set up for use as a quiet space (and has a small library!) for people to relax in.
Please email gatherings@radicalroutes.org.uk and also let Gatherings and Access working group know when you fill in the registration form if you need an alternative to camping.
The main building, where the meetings will be, is single-level, and has no steps between areas. Some of the exits to the patio area DO have steps, but there is one exit to the patio that is flat. Doors all appear wide enough for wheelchairs. There are 3 toilets, 1 toilet/shower, 1 shower.
There is also one dedicated accessible toilet with grip-bars, and a shower with seat. Please do not use the shower in the accessible toilet unless you need the adaptations.
Access Concerns:
We’re not sure if you can get from the stepless patio-door to where we’re planning to put the bar without going over some (level, mown) grass. Also, the accessible door goes past the fire pit, and navigating that when it’s busy might be difficult. Were not sure if access by going out the front door and going round is paved.
Please email gatherings@radicalroutes.org.uk if you need any more info around measurements of doors etc , or any other aspect of accessibility. During the gathering if you need any help around accessibility, finding a quiet space, first aid, information about the timetable etc, please come to the Welcome Desk.
Travel Information
By Car: Laughton Lodge is about 15 minutes’ drive from Lewes or Uckfield, and around 30 minutes from Brighton. Laughton Lodge is signposted from Common Lane. The main car park is on the left as you enter, please park here when you arrive.
The venue can arrange for porters (Laughton Lodge Children!) to meet buses and cars with wheelbarrows to transport tents and baggage up to the top field (they love to do this for tips so bring some change if you want to make use of this service!)
By Public Transport:
Train – Lewes is the best-connected station, with regular services from London, Brighton and the south coast. A taxi from Lewes station to Laughton Lodge takes around 15 minutes and costs approximately £20. If you’re arriving in the evening, it’s worth booking ahead. Try Lewes Station Taxis (01273 569219).
We plan to arrange a minibus taxi to take people to the station at 2.30 on Sunday afternoon, there will be a sign up sheet on the welcome desk for this.
Bus – Alternatively, from Lewes station, it’s about a 10-minute walk to Waitrose on the high street, where you can pick up the number 28 bus directly outside. The bus journey takes around 25 minutes. The number 28 bus runs half-hourly between Brighton, Lewes and Eastbourne, stopping at Laughton Manor (the nearest stop to Laughton Lodge). See timetable.
From the bus stop, it’s a 10-15 minute walk to Shawfield. Walk through the large gates and follow the road uphill until the road ends and you reach a footpath through a small gate. Go through the gate and turn left. Follow the path until it ends on an access road. Turn right and
follow the road past three large brick buildings until you reach Shawfield. If you’re arriving after dark, you’ll need a torch — some of the paths are unlit. See map below for walking.
KIDS
IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU TELL US IF YOU ARE BRINGING CHILDREN. Please fill out information about children you or your coop are bringing when you register for the gathering.
Please register as early as possible so we can plan appropriate activities. We are very glad that you are bringing children to the gathering and we are looking forward to spending time with them. The kids’ space is run by the Kids Working Group.
We are a voluntary group of people who are members of co-ops within the network.
We will be there for the kids while meetings are on but we ask that you come and supervise the children you are responsible for at lunch and dinner so we can eat too. Kids space does not continue into the evening. We will organise child-friendly food/snacks. Food & snacks will be kid friendly & vegan.
Please bring clothes for all weathers for your child as we are hoping to go outside!
Kids Group Volunteer Recruitment Procedure
Childcare and kids group Children are very welcome at the gathering and will have a great time in RR kids group during meetings. There is a section on the registration form for children, please fill in their details there.
Timetable
Thursday 13th:
Arrival from 4pm for Budget Setting Workshops Only
Friday 14th:
Budget Setting Workshops
All Other Arrivals from 4pm
18.30 – 19.30 Supper
Saturday 15th:
8.00 – 10.00 Breakfast
10.30 – 13.30 Meetings and Workshops
13.30 – 14.30 Lunch
14.30 – 18.30 Workshops
18.30 – 19.30 Supper
Sunday 16th:
8.00 – 10.00 Breakfast
9.30 – 11.00 Workshops and Working Group Meetings
11.00 -12.00 Presentations
12.00 – 13.00 Lunch
13.00 – 14.30 Sunday Business Meeting
SLEEPING ARRANGEMENTS
Please see venue information above.
What You Need to bring
What to bring:
Tent/roll mat/bedding
Torch
Suncream/hat
Card for food payment
Cash for bar/cake stall
If you are from a new group (not in a member co-op) and are able to do so, please bring a cash donation to help with the running of gatherings ( suggested donation anything between £5 and £50.)Please bring card payments for meal tickets and cash for bar and cake stall.
Food
Three meals a day plus hot drinks will be provided, and all food will be vegan. It’s best for us if you pay for the whole weekend when you arrive (new groups and individuals who are not members of an RR co-op need to pay for food in advance, details will be emailed when registrations are received). Card payment for meals is hugely preferred please! If arriving Thursday evening for budget setting, food will be £30 per person for the weekend. If arriving Friday evening, it will be £20 for the weekend. Alternatively if you’re only having a couple of meals they can be paid for individually at £3.50/meal hot drinks are included.
Kids eat free. If you have any special requirements ie. gluten free, nut free please state on the registration form.
Please make sure you tell us ASAP if you have additional dietary requirements on the registration form. If you tell us after the 4th May we can’t guarantee to provide what you need.
Entertainment
There will be a bar run by The Cowley Club on the Friday and Saturday evenings, a fire, feel free to bring songs and instruments… and Out of Town Housing Co-op will be organising some surprise entertainment too !
NEW GRoups and People
If you’re new to Radical Routes (whether you’re a new member in an existing co-op or you’re a new co-op looking at Radical Routes), there is a series of workshops designed to introduce you to the workings of Radical Routes and Co-ops in general. They’re informative, exciting and essential! If you’re from a new group, it’s essential that you register your presence with Co-op Support Group by attending the New Groups meeting. This is so that they can confirm you have attended the gatherings as required, arrange joining visits and generally keep you on track.
DONATIONS
If you’re attending as a new group/non-member co-op/interested
individual, we would be grateful for a donation if you can afford it, to help cover the costs of putting on a gathering – suggested donation from £5 to £50 per person. We don’t want this to be prohibitive and it is absolutely not compulsory if you’re not in a financial position to do so. There will be a cash collection tin on the Welcome Desk for this.
PoC HUDDLE
Look for the PoC Welcome, Friday evening.
There will be a Saturday lunchtime PoC Huddle, to which all people of colour are welcome. To avoid the lunch queue eating into our time together, if you are a person of colour and would like to come to the Huddle, please sign up by 10am Saturday at the welcome Desk, and we will try to get lunch delivered to us! For more info about the Huddle, please call Mil (Walden Pond) on 07980 748 555.
DOGS
Strictly no Dogs Unless they are Service Dogs. Sorry we love them furry things too.
Other info
Please come and see us at the welcome desk if you can facilitate, co-facilitate or minute take for meetings or workshops – there will be a sign up sheet.
There will also be a sign up sheet for help needed in the kitchen, washing up rota etc
If you would like a buddy to help you navigate the gathering come and see us at the welcome desk. If it’s your first gathering it can be a lot to take in, but there’s a lot of friendly folk around who’ll be happy to help.
SEND US YOUR WORKSHOP/ SKILLSHARE/ DISCUSSION IDEAS! It’s a really good idea to timetable them. Gatherings@RadicalRoutes.org.uk
Any other questions? Please email enquiries@radicalroutes.org.uk