Enterprising Solutions
About Us
Funded by the Big Lottery until June 2020, Enterprising Solutions is a peer support Programme, which uses the knowledge and experience of established community enterprise practitioners to support new enterprises.
Enterprising Solutions has a network of locally based Co-ordinators based across Wales. These Co-ordinators are based in third sector host organisations across Wales and deliver the support on the ground, matching new and aspiring community enterprises, including their Boards, staff and volunteers, to established Peer Mentors who can pass on their knowledge and learning.
Alongside the peer mentoring support, Enterprising Solutions can also offer community enterprises the opportunity to network with each other and take part in learning events, and attend site visits to see community enterprises in action. Getting to understand the operations of an enterprise, from having the chance to visit and learn for yourself, is key in establishing and sustaining a new activity.
We can support new and emerging community enterprise organisations in a wide range of sectors across Wales. As long as the enterprise is community led, it could operate in any sector or field. To take part, community organisations must have an intention to trade and generate an income from their community enterprise project idea. Enterprising Solutions is aimed at new or existing voluntary and community sector organisations, especially hard to reach groups and communities who have not previously tapped into support for their community enterprise idea. It could help:
- Community groups in the initial stages of setting up a community enterprise project, who may, or may not, have done some initial test trading
- Those with an innovative idea to develop a new enterprise opportunity in a community in Wales
- Those exploring a range of community enterprise ideas in the face of public sector cuts
- An existing organisation exploring new, innovative and enterprising ways in which to sustain current services / activities or acquiring community owned assets for the first time
- Completely new groups who have come together to save a local building or service from closure and manage it as a sustainable community enterprise
Hear about an innovative social enterprise Down To Earth and their outdoor experience work with hard to reach groups. Learn from experienced people like Mark who is one of our peer mentors.