Community Business Crowdmatch
Power to Change has teamed up with Crowdfunder to launch Community Business Crowdmatch. By incentivising and maximising crowdfunding campaigns the programme will help community businesses respond to the Covid-19 crisis. Whether it’s for launching new ideas to help your neighbourhood, help meet increased demand, save a community space or help bridge a funding gap, Community Business Crowdmatch will match fund what you raise from the crowd. Plus, crowdfunding will also help your increase your profile and gain more supporters!
This programme is aimed at emerging, new community businesses, and existing community businesses. Power to Change will match fund up to 50% of your target, to a maximum of £10,000, as long as you can raise the rest through crowdfunding.
Through this fund Power to Change are particularly keen to support new and existing projects in more deprived areas of the country, and to work with Black, Asian and ethnically diverse individuals and community business leaders across England.
There’s plenty of expert support and advice available to get you started on your crowdfunding plans from Crowdfunder and our sector experts.
Find out more about Crowdmatch here.
Community Business ReBoost
ReBoost aims to support community businesses plan and prepare a community share offer to support their recovery from Covid-19. The programme provides match funding to community businesses to rebuild from the ground up by positively engaging motivated communities to help protect and sustain key services and assets in local neighbourhoods. By attracting and engaging members to invest in community shares they can become more robust and resilient.
The programme is particularly targeting existing community businesses who are community benefit societies, co-operatives societies or charitable community benefit societies. Established community businesses willing to convert to a society model to launch a community share offer can also be supported.
What support is available?
• Development grants – up to £5000 to prepare a community share offer: financial planning, governance support, marketing costs and achieving the awarded the Community Shares Standard Mark
• Match equity investment – typically matching pound for pound up to £25,000 invested by the Booster Programme, providing that the minimum share offer target is achieved.
The Community Shares Unit at Co-operatives UK are delivering the programme.
Read the guidance notes here.
Find out more about community shares.