Please use the links below for information on the different kinds of available support:

First stop

Business Link West Midlands

Business Link West Midlands is the new business support service for the region and should be regarded as the first stop for anyone seeking social enterprise support. The organisation offers impartial and expert information, support and advice to help individuals interested in starting their own social enterprise and established businesses looking to boost income generation.

There is specialist support for sector-specific businesses - such as IT, hospitality, food and drink, or creative industries - as well as for client group-specific businesses, such as women, ethnic minorities, young people, social enterprise and rural communities. 

Business Link West Midlands ability to offer specialist start-up support is a long-term commitment and recognises the need some social enterprises have for more intensive support and includes key areas, such as business planning, intellectual property and raising finance.

Existing ventures can undertake a comprehensive business review, which will identify strengths, weaknesses, skills shortages and new opportunities, which will enable the Business Adviser to produce an action plan.

This workable action plan will then be used to select external support from the new West Midlands Supplier Register – a quality assured list of the UK’s best consultants.

All of the support for pre-start and newly formed social enterprises is fully funded and there is no charge to the client.

Easy ways to get in touch

(1) By phone: Call 0845 113 1234 / Minicom 01384 360 391 and start accessing the support you need. We are open Mon-Fri 8am to 6pm and Sat 9.30am to 1pm.* (2) On-line: Visit our website www.businesslinkwm.co.uk by clicking on the link and access a range of useful self help guides and business tools. Register for your free on-line newsletter. (3) By email: You can send us an email on info@businesslinkwm.co.uk with your query or request and we will get back to you during our opening hours. *Please note that our offices are closed on bank holidays. Download the casestudy

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Other sources of local support

In the Birmingham & Solihull sub-region there are also agencies offering specialist social enterprise support and where they have funding to do so one or more of these organisations may be able to help you.

I'SE
Contact: David Lane, Programme Manager
0121 771 1411
david.lane@i-se.co.uk

With immediate effect (February 2008) I'SE is able to offer additional development and support to anyone in Birmingham who is looking for assistance to grow or set up a social enterprise.

This specialist business support, funded through the BIG Lottery BASIS programme, is free and covers feasibility research, business planning, developing new business models etc. It is relevant to social enterprises and to voluntary and community organisations that are seeking to increase their income-generating activities.

Business in the Community
Contact: Rina Guddu
0121 451 2227
rina.guddu@bitc.org.uk

Business in the Community is a unique movement in the UK of over 800 member companies committed to improving their impact on society in four impact areas: community, environment, marketplace and workplace. BITC has two programmes that can benefit social and community enterprises: ‘Partners in Leadership with Community Enterprise’ and ‘Prohelp’.

Partners in Leadership with Community Enterprise

This is an opportunity for a leader of a community enterprise to be partnered with a senior manager from a commercial business to share knowledge and experience. A commitment of 6 meetings over 12 months is required. This partnership provides a learning opportunity to meet with a partner with parallel but independent experience of leadership and management for mutual benefit. As well as broadening experience, the partnership also helps develop knowledge and skills and the ability to generate solutions to unfamiliar problems.

Although the arrangement is one-on-one, BITC needs a minimum of four social entrepreneurs to get together and express their interest in this programme at any one time. So, if you are interested and have three contacts – for example, if you are part of a social enterprise ‘cluster’ – please contact Rina Guddu (above).

There is no charge to the social entrepreneur.

ProHelp

ProHelp is a national network of over 1,000 professional firms each of which has offered to provide professional advice and strategic support free of charge to community groups and voluntary organisations in their local area, including social enterprise. In the West Midlands, there is a Birmingham ProHelp Group.

This group is particularly keen to support initiatives that can make a real, long-term contribution in local communities. For example, a group of Parents who want to set-up a ‘not for profit’ nursery in order to provide affordable childcare for lone parents who want to return to work to improve their family’s financial position.

The ProHelp Group also offers a range of workshop-style programmes on topics such as business planning and project management. Participants are normally expected to bring along real examples to work through in order to maximise benefit. Each ProHelp firm also offers one-to-one advice, where appropriate.

For further information on ProHelp, please email John Guilford at john.guilford@bitc.org.uk.

The Digbeth Trust
Contact: Kate Hazlewood
0121 753 0706
info@digbethtrust.org.uk
www.digbethtrust.org.uk

The Digbeth Trust offers an initial telephone assessment of the client group’s needs and results in either referral to its own consultancy service (provided through a register of quality-assured consultants) or referral to an alternative source of support.

Initial assessment, advice and signposting and the matching of client groups with an appropriate consultancy provider are free. The actual costs of the consultancy support must be met either by the client or by access to funding from a third party provider (the Trust can often advise on potential sources of funding). Until the end-December 2007 the Trust is administering a consultancy grants fund on behalf of the Enterprising Communities regeneration area and clients eligible for support under this programme may be assisted with financial support.

Enterprising Communities Social Economy Development & Growth Programme
Contact: David Kersey
0121 675 7581
Mobile: 07825 282527
david.kersey@birmingham.gov.uk

Enterprising Communities is a regeneration scheme covering the following parts of South East Birmingham: Washwood Heath, Nechells, Bordesley Green, Sparkbrook, Springfield and parts of Hodge Hill, South Yardley and Kings Heath. Under its Social Economy Development & Growth Programme Enterprising Communities can assist voluntary and community groups and social enterprises financially.

Applicants must have a demonstrable ‘not-for-personal-profit’ business structure, social aims clearly stated in their Memorandum & Articles, planned service delivery that takes place within the Enterprising Communities area, evidence of local community partnership and ‘match funding’ (the programme is funded through the European Union and can contribute up to 45% of eligible costs). The financial contribution of the programme can be used to help meet the cost of business development activities and other specialist expertise.

Click here for more about the Enterprising Communities programme

Click here for details of the area covered by Enterprising Communities

iSE
Contact: Andy Beaton
0121 771 1411
info@I-se.co.uk
www.i-se.co.uk

iSE provides a comprehensive business support and development service including pre-start, new-start and trading, continuing and advanced support. There is also specialist support for social firms, business clusters and enterprise partnerships. iSE also provides access to self-help toolkits, learning resources and diagnostics.

Clients are offered an initial one-hour diagnostic/problem-solving session, with onwards progression to internal support programmes where these are available.

Where funding does not exist which enables a client to be assisted iSE will signpost to other resources and self-help tools.

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Courses

Bournville College
Contact: Eddie Cottis
0121 483 1192
eddie.cottis@bournville.ac.uk

Bournville College offers a Start Your Own Business course covering:

• What is a business?
• What is an entrepreneur & first steps to being an entrepreneur
• Market Research and Development and Developing a business idea
• Business behaviour
• Planning and communication
• Will the business make money – working out the costs & marketing ideas & selling to customers
• Your business and your future
• Staying legal

The course is delivered over 15 weeks and is designed to allow you to explore your business idea and put together a business plan before moving on to set up your own business. After completing the course the individual is set to put forward their Business Plan for either going onto the next stage in the process or for constructive feedback and further development.

The Programme is free to those meeting the eligibility criteria. These are: that the individual or group of individuals must live in the South West area of Birmingham; and that he business must operate from an area covered by the Central Technology Belt (this runs from Birmingham to Worcestershire and includes the important knowledge centres of the region including the three Birmingham-based Universities and the University of Worcester and Quentin).

The college also offers free training support for volunteers in the SW Birmingham area. For advice on eligibility and course availability please contact Eddie Cottis.

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Finance

Aston Reinvestment Trust (ART)
Contact: Andy King
0121 359 2444
ART@reinvest.co.uk
www.reinvest.co.uk

ART is a CDFI (Community Development Financial Institution), based in Birmingham and established in 1997. ART exists to fill gaps in the conventional finance market. It fills a niche between bank lending, grant funding and charitable donations. Its remit is to help create local jobs for local people.

ART lends between £10,000 and £50,000 to businesses and social enterprises in Birmingham and North Solihull which need funds to survive or grow, but have been unable to secure them from conventional sources. The loan could be for cash flow or to support a capital investment project. It could be part of a finance package with other financiers, or stand-alone. Repayment terms vary from 6 months to 10 years.

ART is also able to provide support, advice and guidance to its borrowers and in some cases can also offer pre-loan advice.

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Community Loan Fund West Midlands (CLFWM)
Contact: Mike Arch
07810 168988
mike.arch@lif.org.uk
www.lif.org.uk

The Community Loan Fund West Midlands (CLFWM) was established in 2002 to provide loan finance for social enterprises and charities throughout the West Midlands in order to help create jobs.

CLFWM is one of 6 funds operating througout England and is managed by the Local Investment Fund – a charity and the national social lending specialist since 1995.

CLFWM makes loans available from £15k to £100k to charities and social enterprises (companies limited by guarantee), which need funding to enable them to develop, but which have been unable to secure all or part of the necessary funding from conventional sources. Loans can be made available for capital equipment, property purchase or refurbishment, working capital and cash flow support, and gap funding. No personal security is required.

Interest is charged at competitive rates and repayment terms can vary from six months to ten years. All suplus income generated by the Fund is reinvested in making new loans. CLFWM also provides ongoing advice and guidence to all its borrowers and can provide business planning support in some cases.

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Further pages in the About BSSEC section:

BSSEC members

BSSEC aims & objectives