‘I loved being a Workaway host but now Brexit has ended it in the UK’

Workaway has stated it can no longer list exchanges in the UK because of Brexit entry rules (photograph posed by model). Photograph: Cultura Creative (RF)/Alamy

When I first heard about Workaway it sounded too good to be true, and perhaps in some ways it was: a website on which travellers could exchange their skills for free accommodation sounded like something that only happened in dreams. Perhaps that’s what appealed to me about it – the triumph of community over cash.

When I moved to a ramshackle Somerset cottage without enough skills to do the renovations myself, or money to pay tradespeople, I turned to Workaway for help. For the past year it has kept me in labourers and friends.