coop & chicken school

Coop is a project started in the Church Elm Lane shop where eggs from the community chickens are exchanged for resident’s time, as they help look after the hens and also as part of a  neighbourhood swap where residents can donate food to the open fridge.

The Coop Project is something that has developed since the project first started and met residents with the knowledge and skills needed to look after chickens. It started out as a single coop build where residents were involved in co-designs and the build days and together built a coop in the Church Elm Lane shop garden that would house the community chickens. Through the different programmes new residents have come onboard and helped add to the original coop project to broaden the knowledge for themselves and for the team working in the shop space.

coop project

Coop Project in Tomorrow Today Streets

The Coop Project has progressed further to the neighbourhood level as part of the Tomorrow Today Streets project, where residents will be able to learn how to look after chickens through participating in professional training with chickens at the Church Elm Lane shop as part of the journey to being able to get a coop within their street(usually in a residents garden or rooftop). The residents involved with the chickens in the Church Elm Lane shop and the Every One Every Day team help mentor the streets as they gain the knowledge and skill for what it means to have inclusive community chickens where they can exchange eggs and organise a neighbourhood wide rota for some of the jobs to ensure the hens are healthy and happy.

chicken school

Chicken School offers residents the opportunity to learn how to look after chickens in preparation for having their own coop as part of the Tomorrow Today Streets Coop Project or to join the care rota for the chickens in the Every One Every Day shop garden on Church Elm Lane. This project was introduced when residents built the first Coop at Church Elm Lane and more residents wanted to be involved in the care of the hens. It was beneficial for the health of the chickens that residents learnt about what the chickens can and can’t eat, how to look for signs of illness and also how to make sure they have a happy and healthy life.