A couple living in an off-grid community 'encourage the lifestyle for everyone' - as they live off the land and have found 'family for life'.

Ember Smith, 35, and Steph Gabbadon, 35, had both been living nomadically in their separate vans - in the same car park - for three months before bumping into each other for the first time.

Four years later, the pair have built two tiny homes within the South Devon community - made from recycled materials they collected.

The mother-of-two, originally from Cheshire, says living nomadically is "a totally different world and way of life" - where they have found community and family. "

Ember said: "It has been a really transformative time in terms of forming me as a person. "

"I had a real craving for the community." "

The couple explained how they had some friends who owned the land - and after being invited to have a look, Ember 'fell in love with the place, its beautiful ethos and ethics'.

She said: "Our friends had bought this land with the intention of creating a community - they wanted camaraderie and a support network not based on money, but time, friendship and connection. "

"The ethos is all about living with the land, so engaging in permaculture - which is working with the land and regenerating it." "

The community has around 15 to 17 people living there, and everything they produce is organic.

It has a 40 foot polytunnel full of vegetables, fruit and cereal crops - and at certain times of the year the community are totally self-sufficient.

After spending their first year in the community collecting building materials, they have two tiny homes they live in separately.

Within these, the pair have built a loft room for the children, storage for their clothes, hanging lights, book shelves, a desk, as well as a fully-equipped kitchen and bathroom.

Ember runs her own businesses, LunaChick, where she makes reusable sanitary towels - using a solar energy powered sewing machine - and an events company.

Her two children, aged 10 and 12, are in mainstream education - and switch between life in the community and living with their Father in a house.

She explains how each community member plays a different role in contributing to and maintaining their home, and then everyone comes together to help with communal projects.

Ember's role is leading creative and artistic projects - such as designing and constructing a hot tub, and is currently helping to build and decorate a tent for parties.

She explained: "There are not any set roles but people find their niche - one guy for example who is into growing is spearheading the poly tunnel, someone else who is getting into carpentry has been building a yurt to use as a chill out space and healing area"."

Steph's off-grid journey first began when he found himself living in his tiny car and sofa-surfing at 15.

He admits being inspired by punk rock's 'ethos of rebellion and anti-establishment values' and his Father's ambition for him to travel.

Steph explained: "Punk had inspired me to live my own terms. "

"The music and culture challenged societal norms, promoting a DIY attitude and a sense of freedom I desperately needed. "

"My Father believed in the value of experiencing different cultures and perspectives, and his encouragement to explore the world planted the seeds of wanderlust in me." "

Ember, who says she has always been adventurous and inspired by the outdoors, says it was the 2016 General Election that sparked her decision to live off-grid.

She said: "It was a pipedream I always had. "

"I grew up in a council estate surrounded by big marshes - it was the nineties, so I was tree climbing and not seeing my parents from breakfast till teatime! "

"When I was 16 I said to my Mum I wanted to live in a commune - and she said they don't really have those anymore. "

"But it was when I was grown up, had kids of my own and in 2016 when the tories got into power and all these changes were coming through with benefits I knew I had to finally do it. "

"We were living on the bread line as it is - we couldn't have been able to function and we were already massively in debt". "

Ember took her kids to a community in Wales - though admits it was a shock to the system after being exposed to 'torrential rain for a week' and losing their car after someone crashed into it.

The family lost a lot of their savings - but managed to save up to live in a yurt - where Ember home-schooled her children for their first year of school and ran her business.

Whilst staying in a Dartmoor carpark in their van, Ember bumped into Steph whilst trying to clean-up the local area.

The pair were living in identical make and model vans only metres away from one another.

She explained: "I was getting used to the van life - trying to clear up car parks and give people a good impression of what we were doing to discourage the 'Anti-traveller rhetoric' and that's when I met Steph who was doing the same thing - it was lovely". "

Since meeting Steph and building their new life in this community, Ember says she would encourage people to take a chance on off-grid living.

Steph explains why he loves living in an off-grid community - because his family 'get to live sustainability, self-sufficiently and together, as we want'.

He said: "We get to grow together and to watch the children gain a wealth of wisdom and experience through the many and varied characters that make up our little sliver of paradise. "

"The lifestyle lets me live how I want to live but also allows me to help others to live how they want to live - whilst reducing our carbon footprint and revitalizing and rewilding the land. "

"My neighbours (if you can call them that) often feel more like a family than anything else. "

"It's still punk rock, we're still rebelling but in a much quieter humble way!" "

Ember added the road is 'far from straightforward' - but the community is what makes the journey worthwhile.

Ember said: "I would say to anyone absolutely do it - but my advice would be to be aware of the realities. "

"Winters suck - chopping wood in the rain, constantly keeping fire going - doing that on your own is really hard, so finding a community is so beneficial and everyone helps each other out. "

"I wouldn't live any other way - it's amazing"."