Black and Minoritised Communities

The Enterprise Development Programme (EDP) is a five-year programme, funded by Access – The Foundation for Social Investment. It is managed by a coalition of partners, including multiple infrastructure bodies (sector leads) and Social Investment Business as a strategic grant partner.

Support from the programme enables organisations to grow financial resilience and impact by providing a mixture of grant and learning support to help develop and grow enterprise ideas. Those interested in applying will have to share details of their enterprise ideas, along with details of why they want to become more enterprising, as well as explain how their enterprise idea will benefit their wider organisation, service users and community. Those applying to the Enterprise Development Programme should be aware that they are applying to be a part of a cohort of like-minded organisations. Successful applicants will be invited to work on co-designing a package of support.

Packages of support can include the following elements:

• Bespoke learning and training sessions co-designed by you and your sector- lead. • Extensive peer-learning and networking opportunities. • Access to a team of pro bono legal experts to act as a sounding board and guide you through the legal considerations of trading. • Opportunities to attend wider-sector learning events. • The opportunity to receive a grant to develop your enterprise idea. Grants of up to £30k can be awarded, subject to agreed conditions, milestones, and evidence of growing trading income.

Eligibility Criteria for Black and Minoritised Communities sector applicants

• Legally constituted charity, voluntary sector organisation, or social enterprise
• All organisations applying to the progamme must also be able to demonstrate that they are an eligible charity or social enterprise. This means that organisations need to:
• Have a clear social mission
• Distribute less than 50% of post-tax profits and reinvest at least 51% of surpluses into pursuing their social mission, and
• Have a constitutional or contractual lock on their social mission, dividend and surplus distribution policy (also known as an Asset Lock)