We specialise in co-operative and community led organisations. We work with large and small businesses. We work with local community groups. We advise public sector spin-offs and groups of professionals. If you have, or plan to have, some trading activity, a social purpose, or some form of collective ownership, we’re here to support you.
We offer start up advice
We help our clients think through their business ideas, choose the right legal and governance arrangements and set up successful and socially responsible enterprises. See the case study below.
We help businesses to grow
We help with business plans, marketing & sales strategy, finance development, better trading practices, member engagement and governance. Read our case study below.
We help raise finance
We help raise finance through community share issues and support applications for match funding, development grants, loans, and social finance. Find out how in our case study below.
BATCOM: a start-up community composting scheme solving a local problem
Co-operative Futures helps keen composters launch community business. BATCOM is a start-up community composting scheme for Brimscombe and Thrupp in Stroud, Gloucestershire, set up by three people keen to solve a local problem: “In our area we have lots of people with gardens and allotments. But a lot of them live where the council collection […]
Flo’s – The Place in the Park: A community hub supporting local health and wellbeing
Co-operative Futures helps community hub with solid business planning for the future. A community hub in Oxford with a mission to support local health and wellbeing, decided that re-developing a building on their site would enable them to offer greater support to the community. Alice from Co-operative Futures supported Flo’s to draw up a business […]
York Supplies: Much more than a local hardware store
Co-operative Futures helps raise the finance to save a community hardware store. Local hardware store York Supplies, in the Birmingham suburb of Kings Heath, is a much loved institution and community focal point. So much so, that when owner Jon decided to retire, his customers didn’t want the store to be sold off to a […]