Post on 14-Jan-2015
description
Social Enterprises as a mechanism to deliver AONB projects
Tim CrabtreeWessex Community Assets
&Cardiff University
Wessex Community Assets
Small not for profit organisation which supports the development of community and co-operative enterprises:• Renewable energy• Sustainable food• Affordable housing• Cultural sector• Workspace
Wessex Reinvestment Trust group
Established in 2001, the group has 4 separate structures:
• Wessex Reinvestment Trust, a registered charity.• WRT Core Company Limited, which provides home
improvement lending.• Wessex Community Assets, which supports
community asset development.• Wessex Reinvestment Society, has provided
business loans.
Examples of Wessex Reinvestment Trust group activities 2010 - 2012
Wessex Core Company:
Home Improvement
Lending
Business advice , e.g.
The Real Food Store, Exeter
The Community Farm, Bristol
North Dorset Food Incubator &
Training Network
Business advice , e.g.
Bridport Energy Services Ltd:
Zero carbon food production
Partnership with SW Protected Landscapes
Forum:Social Forestry
Business advice , e.g.
Lyme Regis Development Trust
Red Brick Building Centre,
Glastonbury
Enterprise St. Michael’s, Bridport
Housing Food Renewable Energy
Workspace & Community
Assets
Somerset, Devon & Dorset
Community Land Trust Project
Housing
Wessex Community Assets
What is social enterprise?
Social enterprise can be thought of as:• a particular type of organisation (i.e. a business with
a primary social or environmental aim, which returns any surplus to the community which it serves)
or as:• an activity carried out alongside the existing
programmes of community and voluntary sector organisations (i.e. trading activity which either meets the primary purpose of the organisation or creates surpluses to fund services for the community).
Common characteristics of social enterprise
Maximum public benefit
Maximum private benefit
Charity Share company
The “grey area” in the middle of the spectrum
is where social economy organisations operate
No trading revenue
Trading revenue &
grants
Potentially sustainable:
50%+ trading revenue
Breakeven – all
revenue from
trading
Profitable – surplus
not distributed
Profit distributing – socially
driven/ mutual
Profit maximising
Charities/vol orgs Revenue generating social enterprises
Socially driven
business
“Trad-itional”
business
High social return High financial return
Waitrose
Co-op Group
Whole Food
Markets
Green & Blacks (Cadburys)
Rachels Dairy
Local Food Links
Dorset Farmers’ Markets
Somerset Local Food Direct
West Dorset Food & Land Trust
Dorset Food & Health Trust
Somerset Community Food Projects Network
Is “social enterprise” relevant to AONB’s?
• AONB’s have core teams delivering statutory duties – conserving and enhancing protected landscapes.
• Most AONB teams have also developed the capacity to secure additional resources and deliver projects, e.g.– Woodland management– Access / recreation– Grassland management
So – AONB teams already have 2 key resources which support delivery of core
functions and projects:
Grant Finance
People Local communities
Citizens
Core functions&
projects
Some AONB’s have established (or are considering) charitable trusts
• To secure grant funding & donations not available to LA-hosted AONB teams
• To use such funds to deliver additional projects• To receive transferred assets from public bodies
or bequests• To acquire assets, using grants and loans• To engage with the community• To undertake “primary purpose” trading activity
AONB Team in Local
Authority
Local AONB Trust
Social enterprise activity n
Social enterprise activity 2
Social enterprise activity 1
+ +
Possible way forward
AONB Team AONB Trust
Local communities
Projects&
Services
Social enterprise activity
Direct trading
Subsidiary
Lease assets
Support IPS
Joint venture
Example of trust undertaking project delivery and primary purpose trading
West Dorset Food and Land Trust– Charity, established 1998
West Dorset Food Week & Bridport Food Festival
The local food sector in West Dorset:Mapping exercise resulting in Directory
Grow it, Cook it, Eat it Project
Asset based development
• West Dorset Food & Land Trust a member of the Development Trusts Association (now Locality)
• Assets can generate income – e.g. building rentals or land tenancies
• Decision to develop managed workspace – a “Local Food Centre”
Bridport Centre for Local Food
Bridport Centre for Local Food
Bridport Centre for Local Food
Charities are restricted in the range of trading that they can undertake
so may establish subsidiaries
Local Food Links– Trading company, established as
subsidiary of West Dorset Food and Land Trust in 1999
Farmers’ Markets
School Fruit Scheme
Soup Lunch Pilot
Soup Lunch Pilot
Other examples of Trusts setting up trading subsidiaries
The Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust
Eigg Electric
Lyme Regis Development Trust
•St. Michael’s Business Centre
•Wessex secured £100,000 grant from ChangeUp, provided £13,000 loan and negotiated £35,000 Programme Related Investment from Community Foundation for Bournemouth, Dorset & Poole
Lyme Regis Development Trust
• New assets:– Youth café with flat– Youth centre– Monmouth house – flats
• Supports project activity, e.g.– Fossil Festival
• Developing proposals for £8 million Field Studies Centre with Natural History Museum
Trusts do not have to run operations themselves or
through subsidiaries
• Trusts can use their assets to support social economy activity– At a discounted rent, where the enterprise
delivers against the Trust’s objects– At a market rent.
Local Food Links Ltd
• Restructured into a Community Benefit Society (a form of Industrial & Provident Society), with membership open to parents, schools, wider community
• Previously, Local Food Links only had one member – the Trust
New Central Kitchen at Centre for Local Food
Local Food Links: ethical sourcing
• Meat – Genesis Farmers• Milk – Coombe Farm• Yogurt – Yeo Valley• Butter – Denhay Farms & Coombe Farm• Cheese – Denhay & Coombe Farm• Flour – Edward Gallia, Cerne Abbas• Eggs – Vurlands Farm• Vegetables in season – Bothen Hill Organic,
Washingpool Farm, Somerset Organic Link• Fruit in season – Elwell Farm• Bread – Leakers, Punch & Judy Bakery• Food service – Essential Trading
Local Food Links – current status
• Two hub kitchens – one leased from West Dorset Food & Land Trust, one from Dorset County Council
• 25 staff• 24 schools, 3 nurseries, 1 day centre, 8
lunch clubs• 1200 meals per day• Turnover: over £500,000 p.a.
Hostetin Apple Juicing Plant, Czech Republic
Veronica Foundation
Hostetin Apple Juicing Plant
Raised funds
Leased to
White Carpathians Traditions
Apple Juicing Social
Enterprise
Runs
Apples
Small farms
Trusts can enter into joint ventures
Joint Venture:
Grameen – Danone Yogurt Business
Grameen-Danone Shoktidoi yogurt factory in Bangladesh
Real Wood Studios Ltd., a cooperative of wood workers
Woodschool Ltd
Majority shareholder
Minority shareholder
Trusts can lease assets to private companies or social
enterprises
£1 million raised from community shares
Fordhall Community
Land Initiative:
owns land and public access
facilities
Fordhall Farm Ltd:
lifetime tenancy
Land
Rent
The Earth Trust
• Set up as the Northmoor Trust for Countryside Conservation in 1967, with a large endowment from Sir Martin and Audrey Wood
• Now own 1,200 acres of farmland, woodland, nature reserves, research plantation and wetland
• Also: management of three community meadows, Thrupp Lake at Radley,
• 30 staff, 100 regular volunteers • 750 regular supporters• Around 30,000 people each year take part in
Trust activities annually
Cultivate
Trusts can link with Community Benefit Societies
which then run social enterprises
Tablehurst & Plaw Hatch Community Farm
• Founded in 1995 following a community-led campaign that raised over £150,000 to purchase the stock and business assets of Tablehurst Farm from Emerson College.
• Now 400 members of the IPS, each paying £100 for their share.
• The land – 800 acres – is owned by a Trust.• The Trust leases the land to the IPS.• The IPS has 2 subsidiary trading businesses
Tablehurst & Plaw Hatch Community Farm
West Oxford Community Renewables
WOCR
Solar PV
Hydro
Wind
Wood
Susta
inable
Living
Investors Funds
Green energy
Reducing energy bills
Local food projects
Low carbon travel
Reducing waste
Planting trees
Sharing resources
LCWO£
Financial, carbon and social return to investors
IPS CHARITY
Helping communities raise local finance through share issues & loans
£152,775 raised £105,000 raised
Amount Subscribed Number of Subscribers
Totals at each Subscription Level
£100 157 £15,700
£200 47 £9,400
£500 36 £18,000
£1000 21 £21,000
£20,000 2 £40,000
REAL FOOD EXETER: Analysis of the share register on closure at 30 September 2010
The Community Farm
• In November 2010, the Community Farm launched their community share offer inviting members of the public to invest in a 22 acre horticulture operation.
• By the end of March 2011, 409 people had invested £126,000 in the Community Farm.
• This investment has enabled The Farm to take over the established veg box scheme, organic growing and wholesale business of the Better Food Company.
£1,600,000 raised
Community share societies
Trade sectorPost 2009 societies
Pre 2009 societies
Members Share capital
Renewable energy 59 13 9,642 £17,450,000
Community shops 37 9 4,472 £1,103,000
Community regeneration 15 9 3,668 £2,086,000
Food & farming 23 4 10,430 £1,199,000
Consumer co-operatives - 208,553,000
£191,275,000
Pubs and brewing 11 2 1,265 £1,343,000
Community finance 3 9 1.837 £2,114,000
Community land trusts 10 2 558 £35,000
Fair trade 2 1 9,222 £26,151,000
Other 16 9 38,367 £7,260,000
Totals 176 78 8,638,000 £255m
Members improve competitive advantage
Members roles How these roles improve competitive advantage
Investor Lower cost of capital; greater acceptance of risk
Customer Greater loyalty; accept higher prices & dividend
Service user Demonstrates support to funders; better feedback
Activist More engagement; better feedback; better targeting
Volunteer Lower labour costs; access to specialist skills
Suppliers Greater loyalty; lower input prices
Workers Greater loyalty; lower input prices; better feedback
Directors Access to specialist skills; lower input prices
Community Supported Forestry
• WCA working with SW Protected Landscapes Forum to explore the potential for community engagement in woodland management.
• Would involve elements of the CSA and Care Farming approaches
• West Dorset Woodfuel Co-op to be establshed as IPS.
• In the long term could be share issue to purchase woodland – Tamar AONB exploring pilot
Local Food: Different forms of support
• Sector specific support, e.g. CSA’s• Specialist Enterprise Support• Advice on governance / legal
structuresAlso:• Dissemination / sharing learning• Social franchising or licensing• Spin offs
Primary Production Processing Distribution Retail/Food
Service
Cons
umpti
on
Enterprise Support
Food Mapping
Governance & Legal Structures
Local Food Systems
Local Shops
Food Co-ops & Buying Groups
Home Produced Food
Farmers’ Markets
CSA’sCSA’s Supply & Distribution
The Making Local Food Work programme
In-direct investment via intermediary organisations: the example of Making Local Food Work
Social Capital
Human Capital
Physical Capital
NaturalCapital
Investment:
Grant from Big Lottery
Reshapedfood operations
Reshapedfood services
FinancialCapital
Plunket: community retail
Making Local Food WorkProgramme
SUSTAIN Food co-ops
SUSTAIN Food hubs
Soil Association: CSA
Co-ops UK: Governance
Soil Association: Buying groups
FARMA: Farmers’ Markets
Country Markets: Country Markets
CPRE: Food Webs
Other infrastructure support models
Locality• 423 members in England• Combined income of £325 million - £172
million earned income• £660 million assets• 5,500 staff• 20,000 volunteers
Land & natural resources
Buildings & equipment
Grant Finance
People
Local communities& ConsumersCitizens
Primary production Processing Distribution RetailProjects
& Services Social enterprise activity
Trading income
People
AONB TeamIn
Local authorityTRUST
Land & natural resourcesBuildings & equipment
Grant Finance
People
Primary production Processing Distribution Retail
Local communitiesConsumersCitizens
Loan Finance Equity Finance
Investors
Projects&
Services Social enterprise activity
Some conclusions
• Trusts can be established as core asset holding vehicle
• Can carry out primary purpose trading• Can establish trading subsidiary• Can lease assets to small businesses, coops or
social economy organisations• Can explore joint ventures or partnerships, e.g.
with a Community Benefit Society that engages the local community as investors, consumers and volunteers
Contact:
Tim Crabtreetim.crabtree@wessexca.co.uk
www.wessexca.co.uk