A boost for local enterprise and a challenge to payday lenders
02.05.2014
Work is underway to set up and test a simple and practical community finance partnership to deliver wide-ranging finance and support services in Bristol. The pilot project is being led by the South West Investment Group (SWIG), a community development finance institution (CDFI) that will partner with other services to present a viable and integrated alternative solution to fragmented mainstream finance and support services.
SWIG Fund Manager, Sarah Osborn has high hopes for the impact of the pilot, ‘BOOST Neighbourhood Finance’ and said, ”The aim is to pull together, re-brand and market a package of financial services in order to make them visible and accessible to people and businesses in areas and ways the commercial sector does not reach.”
‘BOOST Neighbourhood Finance’ will focus on more than ethical and affordable loan finance for businesses, home and personal needs. Help will be offered for moving from unemployment into self-employment, backed up with business advice as well as support and finance for social enterprise in local communities. There is a plan to fill service cracks with a range of activities and opportunities to improve financial confidence and literacy, understand credit and how it works, access money advice, and look at ways of saving and how to deal with a poor credit history.
Partners will include the Barton Hill Settlement, a Community Development Trust [in the heart of the city] that has been working with local communities for over 100 years supporting the education, social and economic needs of local people.
Ben Hughes, Chief Executive at the Community Development Finance Association (CDFA), initiated the work, and has a longer term goal in mind,
“We need to address the problems in communities and neighbourhoods across the country that are affected by decades of low economic activity and exclusion from financial services. Our vision is to increase the disposable income in local areas, reduce the market for pay-day loans and doorstep finance, and increase the number and success of enterprises based there.”
The pilot has received funding from the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG). The CDFA will evaluate the Bristol pilot and work with DCLG on ways of launching community banking partnerships across the country from 2015/16 onwards.
Bristol’s VOSCUR, the infrastructure organisation that supports, develops and represents the voluntary and community sector, is playing an active role in the research and development phase of the Pilot Project before the launch of services in early September.
About SWIG Finance
SWIG, South West Investment Group Services, is a not-for-profit organisation and member of the Community Development Finance Association that provides loan finance to businesses which cannot access sufficient finance from the banks and elsewhere.
SWIG operates across the South West supporting SMEs in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire.
With finance sourced from both the public sector, via local authorities, European funds, central government and the private sector, we invest loan finance into south west businesses which are either just starting up or planning for growth and need funds to get things moving. Find out more here.
About the Community Development Finance Association (CDFA)
The Community Development Finance Association (CDFA) is the voice for providers of fair and affordable finance. We represent and support a national network of community development finance institutions or CDFIs.
Our mission is to support the development of a thriving and sustainable CDFI sector that provides finance for disadvantaged and underserved communities, bringing wealth, well-being and economic prosperity to these areas. We provide support, funding and networking services to CDFIs, raise their profile with government and investors, and seek to create a positive environment for their continued growth and success.