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Learning from the GROW Fund pilot

A community-led social investment fund for local businesses

Dancers taking part in a BDYD event.

The GROW Fund is part of the UK’s first community-led social investment fund. It’s the largest sum we’ve  ever granted in a single initiative and a completely new model for participatory investment.  

The GROW Fund pilot launched with £360,000, consisting of £200,000 in grants and £160,000 for business development and loans. The Fund was for businesses with strong community ties and potential for substantial growth. 

Like all our projects, GROW Fund was ‘participatory’ putting residents at the heart of decision-making. A community steering group of 12 local people designed the eligibility criteria and the application process, ensuring it was inclusive and aligned with local needs. 

Read more about their journey here

Highlights of this approach were:   

  • Successfully reaching groups who are typically underrepresented in the investment world because they saw it as something for them.

     

  • Boosting grassroots business development, particularly with Black female-led businesses.

     

  • Grantees reported significant improvements in their business operations, community connections, and personal wellbeing. 

What we learned

Kemi and Jack at Kemi's pop-up shop.

The pilot has shown an appetite for this type of funding in Barking and Dagenham and there is a pipeline of exciting and investable opportunities here. The long-term potential – locally and nationwide – is untapped!  

We’re actively fundraising for the second year of the GROW Fund. We want to talk to funders that recognise the success of the pilot and believe that social investment markets can be developed in places where few think that’s possible.  

We are excited about the GROW Fund’s ability to shift perspectives about investment, change the way businesses and investors interact, build agency and inspire local people at every stage of its process.  

We invite partners to join us on the next phase of this transformative journey. The GROW Fund has laid a strong foundation; with your support, we can build on this success

Find out more

Our aim is to bring Barking & Dagenham out of the cold and transform it into a hotspot for social sector funding and investment. We aim to attract £5 million of additional investment to address the systemic issues that matter most to local people. 

For more information about the report contact Cameron Bray, Head of Systems & Impact. 

For more information about partnership and investment opportunities contact Kate Harmatz, Head of Fundraising & Partnerships. 

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