Social enterprise bolsters presence in North East with new office and hot-desk offering
A social enterprise which has been trading across the North East for the last decade has acquired a building at Austin Boulevard, Sunderland, where it will continue to serve the region’s businesses as well as offering free hot-desking for small businesses.
The Business Enterprise Fund North East (BEF NE) has moved into the 133m2 space with its five-strong team, to further support SMEs and entrepreneurs across the region and help them access responsible, flexible finance options.
Following on from the now-20 year success of BEF across Yorkshire, BEF NE was set up as a new community development finance institute (CDFI) in 2015 to meet the increasing demand for supporting communities in the North East, and has now loaned over £20m, helping 800 businesses adding £80m of gross value to the regional economy.
“It’s a privilege to work in this sector supporting people with critical business finance, to help bring about real community transformation. We’ve achieved so much in the last 10 years and buying this building hopefully shows our commitment to the region and our determination to make a difference. The need for organisations like ours is even more important in these uncertain time and we have dedicated team who want to deliver the best outcomes for the companies we serve. It’s fantastic to now have a solid base where we can invite businesses to meet, network and collaborate.”
Lee Vickers, Senior Investment Manager at BEF NE
Embarking on this period of growth and development, BEF NE has plans to grow its team throughout the year to be able to provide support to business owners and the wider community and will also be offering free hot-desking space for small businesses at its Austin Boulevard base.
“It’s become evident in the last few years how vital financial support is for businesses across the region and we’ve had the benefits of securing £1.5m of funding from Ceniarth, a large family office committed to supporting community transformation and the Start-Up Loans contract for the north east which has made a huge difference to companies who are driving positive impact in their local communities – but who struggle to access mainstream finance. We’re also pleased to have won a share of the Lloyds and Big Society Capital Community Enterprise Funding which gives us an extra £4.8m of capital to support local businesses this year. There are a myriad of reasons small businesses may require access to finance and we’re proud and excited to be in a position to support their growth.”
Stephen Waud, Chief Executive at BEF
Loans from BEF NE are used for working capital, start-up costs, expansion, stock, technology or property and have been utilised by local businesses including real estate specialists Home Sale Pack, educational board game and app MiBox Live and property maintenance specialist, AFL Decorating and Maintenance.