Hello friends,

You’re reading this because Em and I value your opinion, and because we have a feeling that you like the YesBus, a lot. There may even be a couple of you reading this who have never been to the YesBus but you still like it. More importantly, you like what we: SayYesMore, the tribe, the bus - stand for.

Em and I have busted ourselves for more than three years now, spending hours every day on some element of SayYesMore’s madness. We’re tired. We donate more of our time to the YesTribe than we give to ourselves, and we realised last year that sometime soon this trend needs to end for the sake of our sanity, and our health!

Now, we love SayYesMore and we believe in it wholeheartedly, and in case you’re wondering…no, this isn’t a break up letter.

This is a dream about a new start. For us as a couple, and hopefully for the YesBus. Part of our future plan has been nudged along by the experience we’ve had with the YesBus, or more specifically the site it is on.

I can safely say that for all of its wonder, coolness and the memories it has created, the YesBus has been the single biggest stress of my life.

There are many difficulties associated with running this community but they’re often worth the hassle because of the overall positives.

When it comes to the bus though, the scales often weigh the other way. It’s only in the last couple of months, ironically when this beautiful place I write from hasn’t been able to serve its primary function, that I’ve found some peace here. For me, the idea of the YesBus had very little to do with a bus - it’s about the nature, the fresh air, the community we feel when we’re here. A place for the YesTribe to freely escape, and I mean ‘freely’ literally!

Financially the thing doesn’t wipe its face, but that’s not a massive issue because Yestival has tided us over well these last couple of years. Brinsbury charge us £2500 a year in rent which in itself is a steal, but the behind-the-scenes dealings with the college - which Em and I solely take on - are often soul destroying.

Some background to the YesBus relationship with Brinsbury:

After buying the bus back in 2016 we put the word out that we were looking for a patch of countryside for it to live in. The then Land Manager at Brinsbury, a hero named Nicky, invited me over for a look. It fit the bill. in October 2017 the bus arrived in Brinsbury and two months later Nicky left! Uh oh!

Despite drawing up a contract with the College back in 2017 they still haven’t signed it. Not a day has gone by since when I haven’t felt the tight ball of anxiety in my stomach, waiting for them to move us on without notice. It’s like a little stress tumour. And this fear isn’t without merit.

In January last year I received a call from the Principal of the College, a good guy who by all accounts is in our court. He told me that a number of staff at Brinsbury has formed a list of complaints about our site, which had evolved into a report which concluded that we should be evicted. Heartbreak.

January to May 2018 had been the set-up months for our site and then May to October 2018 gave us a chance to work out what we could do here. And then, just as we were about to head into a 2019 that should have been a cracker for the YesBus, we received this news. We couldn’t plan ahead or book in events, especially those much needed school or corporate hires which go some way to cover our costs. It wasn’t until June last year, a full six months after the report came out, that we sat down with the College and realised that nothing in the report was valid and that we were okay to stay.

An uncertainty continues to float and this combines with other insurmountable issues. 

As part of our agreement we owe the College 100 voluntary “man hours” and more often than not, Em and I are the ones to take them on.

We’ve had one break-in on the bus. Thankfully it was very low level and just a warning shot. We have cameras on board now but it’s always a worry when we’re away (which outside lockdown is almost always!).

Now and then a member of staff still complains about the “big blue bus” although we do absolutely everything we can ensure a low level here.

And then there’s the distance travelled and time we’ve spent on hundreds of trips to lead an event or maintain the bus. It’s all added up, it’s become a chore.

So, change is needed. The site is beautiful, perfect in many ways. It’s off the beaten track and need to leave Brinsbury.

This certainty has mingled with our own hopes for the future. Ideas have percolated for a while and our vision is now pretty clear and exciting. Our personal dream naturally continues to collide with the YesTribe’s and our passion to bring people together and outside isn’t diminished.

We’ve been searching for a smallholding or an old farm, a home surrounded by a few acres of land where we can run our own business. Camping, Glamping, Bushcraft and Workshops and Company Retreats and Outdoorsy weddings (over to you Em!).

And through all of this the YesBus is never far from our thoughts. Having control over what we can do with a small patch of YesTribe countryside would unleash us, and not having to travel hundred of miles to look after the bus would also free us up for more important stuff and make life so much easier when we hold Yes events.

In the absence of the money we need to buy the place of our dreams we’ve lined up some loans and are prepared to go into a bunch of debt to make this happen (within reason!). And of course our business plan is rocking so a few years down the line we’ll be out of the red!

All this brings me to the point of this letter. It’s important that the community has a say when it comes to the moving of the bus and your voices are louder than those of the folks on the Tribe who have just arrived, or even have been lurking for a few years without attending anything.

We’ve been looking high and low for a property. A good location is naturally high on the list of hopes but the closer we are to London the more the land costs, and the less we get for it. We’ve viewed 10 acres south of Oxford and 4-35 acres in Wiltshire, but the fee has been so high we’d be paying it back for twelve, maybe fifteen years. (We reckon 5-7 is okay for our mental health!).

With the pause of lockdown Em and I have finally come to the conclusion that location - which is almost entirely pushed by wanting the bus to be within striking distance of London and thousands of YesTribers - isn’t as important as what we need.

Selfish? Absolutely, in the best possible sense.

Our next move is for us, it has to be. We’ve donated thousands of hours and we need consistency, a real home, a way to earn some money instead of volunteering all of our time away. And while the YesTribe is on our minds every minute we’ve figure - or more accurately, hope - that wherever the YesBus ends up, people will come. Maybe not if it’s northern Scotland, but still…. :)

As I said earlier, the setting for the YesBus is key. We’d only ever choose a new base if the setting could provide all the beauty and peace and calm that a YesTribe basecamp deserves.

My question to you: is location more important than setting?

There are some of you reading this in London. Some on the South Coast. Some in Birmingham, Exeter, Bristol, Gloucestershire…Norway :)

The crowdfunding campaign which covered about half of the bus’ costs wasn’t location dependent, we only made an agreement with Brinsbury once we’d funded the bus, so we’re not too worried about the folks who contributed so long ago. We do care about those who visit regularly. A change of location will benefit some and hinder others.

Wherever we end up some people will get the short end of the straw and while being as close to London as possible is still our dream due to so many the people we care about living in the Capital, it seems very unlikely that we can find the type of place we need within a couple of hours drive/public transport from London.

This has been our biggest quandary of the year but we figured we might just find the right place and everything else would go out the window.

And this week Em viewed a place that made us both sit up. It excited us. In so many ways it’s perfect. It’s affordable, has 14 beautifully spaced acres mixing meadow with woodland. There’s clear space for the YesBus/Tribe HQ and a glorious spot for Yestival, with yet more space for commercial Glamping and Camping. And yep, there’s still a decent plot for the chickens, allotment and ALPACAS! (Not joking).

The only downside: it’s in Lincolnshire!

We don’t know yet whether we’ll go for this place but it feels like a great time to start this conversation with you. Next week we’re road trippin’, viewing a handful of other properties we’ve found online. In east Wales, Wiltshire, Shropshire. And then we’ll head back over to Lincolnshire so I can see Em’s find with my own eyes.

We’re ready. To settle down. Make Camp. Re-build. Create a long term home for the YesTribe and Yestival and regular Team Summits.

We just don’t want to make this move with anyone feeling left out. While this is ultimately our choice and we’re taking on the finance and the responsibility, this Yes family is important to us. The YesBus and what it stands for is important to us. You’re important to us.

Together we’ve built something amazing, there’s nothing like the YesTribe anywhere on the planet and it’s a result of a bunch of delicious ingredients. Yes, you’re an ingredient! (I’ll get you a t-shirt).

So, we’d love your input. Below you’ll find a little form. A chance to ask questions and have your say about what happens with the YesBus. We still feel like we’re the best people to do justice to this project and while there are always alternatives we’d love to make sure that at the very least when we find our new home, we’d have your blessing if the YesBus joins us.

As always, thanks for your wisdom, time and support, we’re sending out big big hugs to all of you.

With love, Dave and Emms