Futurebuilders investments hit £50 million mark

13.07.2006

Over 140 voluntary organisations in England have now been offered a Futurebuilders investment totalling £51.5 million of the investment fund. Spanning five public sector delivery areas, the Futurebuilders fund offers voluntary and community organisations (VCOs) a mix of loan and grant finance to help them deliver better public services.

"I am confident Futurebuilders will enable the creativity of the third sector to find greater expression - reaching new groups, using new tools, and ensuring lasting improvements in the delivery of public services." Ed Miliband, Minister for the Third Sector

Since 2004, we have offered investments to 144 diverse and dynamic organisations delivering a wide range of public services. These include projects which are reducing re-offending rates through employment, education and training; building new children’s centres; improving carer support services; supporting communities in dispute; and helping young people out of education and living in rural areas gain vocational qualifications.

Richard Gutch, Chief Executive, Futurebuilders England said:

“Futurebuilders is still a relatively new finance model for the third sector, but more and more organisations are beginning to realise that loan finance is a viable option. We are now almost halfway to committing the £110m we have available for investment and on track to achieving our target of committing the fund by June 2007.
 
“It’s also impressive to note that some of our early investees are now beginning to pay back their loans through public sector contracts. We know that negotiating and winning contracts is challenging for many organisations; but by working in partnership, we can start to influence change in the sector that will ultimately secure long-term financial sustainability for VCOs and their users.”

Ed Miliband, Minister for the Third Sector said:

“The first £50 million has provided strong foundations for third sector organisations around the country, supporting inspiring social entrepreneurs and dynamic community champions.

“As these foundations are built upon, I am confident Futurebuilders will enable the creativity of the third sector to find greater expression - reaching new groups, using new tools, and ensuring lasting improvements in the delivery of public services.“

Leeds Community Mediation Service (LCMS) is one organisation that approached Futurebuilders during its first round of applications and is now repaying its loan.

Simon Williams, Chair of Leeds Community Mediation Service said:

“Taking on a loan should never be entered into lightly, but Futurebuilders were supportive and helped us take a good look at ourselves as an organisation before signing the dotted line.

“We received grants for capacity building - including consultancy in IT and management, while the loan has enabled us to pay for core frontline staff while we developed service level agreements with local purchasers.

“We worked with Futurebuilders to ensure there was a market for our service and devised an investment package that allows for our ups and downs. Winning contracts wasn’t easy, but with a renewed business plan we are now repaying the interest on our loan. So while grants were essential up until now, the Futurebuilders loan is moving us towards a longer-term funding solution.”

LCMS provides a range of mediation and training services, including community, workplace and NHS conciliation. A Futurebuilders investment of £203,500 is for working capital, while LCMS implements a five-year programme to establish service level agreements with public sector partners.

Just over a year ago, Futurebuilders agreed a £250,000 investment for the Yemeni Economic and Training Centre (YETC) in Sheffield. Following an initial six month repayment holiday, the organisation is now making significant loan repayments through various contracts locally.

Abdul Shaif, Chair of the Yemeni Economic and Training Centre said:

“Futurebuilders has been a fantastic opportunity for us to engage in mainstream activity. The loan has helped to improve the quality of our building to a deliver first-class learning and conference centre for the Yemeni and black and ethnic minority community in Sheffield.

“We had never used loan finance before and we were initially sceptical of the benefits it would bring. However, working with Futurebuilders has helped us to think more professionally and in a more business-like manner. Paying back the loan is a challenge, but with a rigorous business plan and developing good relationships with local purchasers - such as local colleges and the Learning and Skills Council - we are making good progress.”

The Futurebuilders loan is helping to support structural repairs and refurbishment of an education, training and community support centre. The centre was established in the early 1990s to meet the needs of the local Yemeni community in Sheffield, but now supports all individuals from the wider BME community. They deliver a range of accredited and non-accredited training, information, advice, guidance and community cohesion activities.

For further information please contact Jenni Anderson or Alice Grahame on 020 7927 6356.

Ends

Notes to editors

1. Pictures of Leeds Community Mediation Service are available for publication. Please contact Jenni Anderson or Alice Grahame on 020 7927 6356.
2. Futurebuilders is the government-backed £125 million investment fund for voluntary and community sector. It offers a mixture of grants and loans to voluntary and community organisations that want to expand their public service delivery. Organisations must be willing to enter into contracts with public sector agencies to generate revenue for the services they provide.
3. So far Futurebuilders England has approved investments of £51.5 million in 144 organisations working in five key policy areas: health and social care, education and learning, children and young people, crime prevention and community cohesion. Case studies in each policy area are available for publication.

Futurebuilders England is open for applications. Click here to apply.

Our 2005/6 Annual Review is available online. Please download your copy here.