West Cumbria Social Enterprise Hub
SOCIAL enterprise is playing a key role in the regeneration of West Cumbria, thanks to the success of ‘The Hub’.
Since its inception in 2005, The Hub has helped more than 30 social enterprises to either start up or to flourish. The £1 million scheme is managed locally on behalf of the partners by Cooperative Mutual Solutions and provides support to emerging social enterprises with feasibility planning, capital and revenue grants in addition to providing assistance on business planning, board development and networking.
West Lakes Renaissance has invested £450,000 into the scheme, with the remainder of funding coming from Cumbria County Council and the European Regional Development Fund.
One of The Hub’s biggest successes has been Interchoc – a new cooperative company importing, manufacturing and distributing a range of confectionary to the retail and catering market. Interchoc received a £30,000 grant to establish a base on Workington’s Salterbeck Industrial Estate, selling and distributing chocolate bars, novelties and sweets and creating several jobs for the local community.
Interchoc is a workers co-operative, with profits being ploughed back into local causes such as hospices, hospitals, youth groups and charities rather than to shareholders.
The West Coast Community Fitness Centre is another project to have benefited from The Hub, which contributed £20,000 on top of West Lakes Renaissance’s £30,000 grant, to help cover revenue costs.
The centre based on the Mirehouse Estate in Whitehaven was the brainchild of local man Martin McMullen. As well as the usual cardiovascular and weight training equipment, the centre boasts a boxing ring and bags. There is also a community room and kitchen for use by local clubs and societies as a meeting place. The centre is already proving popular for all sections of the community. And, as with Interchoc, because it is a social enterprise any profits go back into new facilities at the centre or into the local community.
A number of projects such as the Lingla Centre in Frizington and Kidzone Nursery in Workington, have received specialist mentoring support from other social enterprises in the area.
The Hub has been so successful that it was shortlisted as an Examplar project by RENEW in 2006 along with other projects from all across the North West.
For more information on the work of the Hub please contact:
Anne Cartner, Project Manager, The Hub: 07725 246 434
Gareth Nash, The Hub: 07967 815 321
Nik Hardy, West Lakes Renaissance: 01946 693 241
The Community Reponse Fund
THE Community Response Fund was established by West Lakes Renaissance to counter the effects of major redundancies that have taken place in West Cumbria.
The fund offers immediate financial assistance (up to £5,000), to people who are, or are about to be made redundant, for training costs and other legitimate expenses incurred to aid their re-integration back into the labour market. To date around 20 people have been assisted back into employment.
The fund can also assist people who are seeking to establish their own business and need financial help with capital costs.
To be eligible a person must live or work within West Cumbria, have been or are about to be made redundant and need to retrain or improve their skills. The application form is only two pages long and only requires a minimum amount of supporting information to help speed up the process.
All applications go to a panel that comprises Allerdale and Copeland Borough Councils, the GMB Union, the TUC, Learning and Skills Council, Connexions, Job Centre Plus, West Cumbria Development Agency, Employment Support Project and West Lakes Renaissance.
If you are interested in finding our more about the Community Response Fund then please contact:
• Cleator Moor Business Centre – 01946 813555
• Employment Support Project – 01946 591004
• West Cumbria Trades Hall – 01900 61874
• Or your local Job Centre Plus
