Applications are open for the Community Business Trade Up Programme, run by the School for Social Entrepreneurs, in partnership with Power to Change. This programme helps the leaders of community businesses in England. It focuses on growing income from trading, to improve impact and sustainability. This programme has already supported 130 community businesses. In the first cohort of the programme, community businesses typically increased their income from trading by 92% in one year.

This programme runs from seven locations across England. Power to Change is fully funding this programme, so there is no cost to applicants, and it is providing grants of up to £10,000 (a grant is money applicants don’t have to pay back). Power to Change is an independent charitable trust endowed by the Big Lottery Fund. Its aim is to support community businesses in England to create better places.

Eligibility

This programme is for community businesses who want to grow by increasing their sales (trading). A community business is run by and for a local community. Its profits are reinvested for the benefit of that community. They will be working towards these criteria:

• Locally rooted
• Accountable to the local community;
• Trading for the benefit of the local community;
• Making a broad community impact

The community businesses on this programme will have plans to grow trading (income from sales) by at least £10,000 in the next year. Find out more in the guidance notes.

Benefits 

It offers:

• A learning programme: 12 days spread over nine months
• A Match Trading grant of up to £10,000
• A community of people running organisations like yours.

Students on this programme receive a Match Trading grant of up to £10,000, which can be drawn down over 12 months. The grant is linked to growth over the year. It incentivises social organisations to focus on increasing their income from trading, so they can build stronger futures.

The learning programme runs from June 2019 to March 2020. The deadline to apply is 1pm on 14th February 2019.