About us
Futurebuilders England is a unique government-backed fund offering support and investment to third sector organisations to deliver public services. We offer a combination of loans, grants and professional support. Most organisations have never borrowed before, so we provide sustained, flexible and individual support to ensure our investees have the right financial, managerial and governance structures to take on a loan and successfully compete for contracts in the public sector.
Eligible organisations
A range of organisations are eligible for our investments, including charities, social enterprises, community interest companies, voluntary groups and community organisations. We offer investment packages to third sector organisations working across all public services. This could include organisations working to improve public services such as community cohesion, health, education and learning. waste and recycling, sport and leisure and the arts, as well as social enterprises.
We invest in small, medium and large organisations as well as a good mix of rural and urban-based projects. Our largest investment to date is £10.2 million (to Turning Point) and although our minimum investment package is always £50,000, we also offer smaller development support to applicants who show real potential and an interesting approach to public service delivery but require more development before we could justify a full investment.
Our progress
Since our launch in 2004, Futurebuilders England has offered £138 million in investments to 271 third sector organisations.
Key data from our second learning report
- 58% of Futurebuilders full investees have not borrowed before
- 28% of applicants and 21% of investees are black and minority ethnic (BME) managed third sector organisations
- Loans and guarantees make up 84% of total investments: nearly half the loans are unsecured
- 60% of loans are for buildings or refurbishment and 40% for development capital
- Just over half of investees received a larger investment than they originally requested
- 75% of investees receiving development grants re-apply for a full investment
Every investment is carefully scrutinised by a team of in-house investment officers who offer ongoing support to help the project become a long-term success.
Further details
For further details about our investment model and approach, please download our 2007-08 investment plan (PDF 800k). The 2007-08 investment plan was approved by the Futurebuilders England Board in March 2007. It is still subject to final approval by ministers.
Futurebuilders England is the trading name of Futurebuilders England Limited, a company registered by guarantee. Registered in England. Registered company no. 5066676. Registered office: 3rd Floor, 3-5 Rathbone Place, London W1T 1HJ.