WeLoveMarlborough

New enterprise hub helps Wiltshire co-operative

A Marlborough company which was established to run and promote arts and culture events in the town has received free business advice and support through the newly-launched Co-operative Enterprise Hub.

We Love Marlborough, which conceives, plans and runs public events and provides support for arts enthusiasts and practitioners – including a free what’s on guide through its website, www.welovemarlborough.co.uk – applied to the hub for help with its strategic and operational business planning.

Louisa Davison from We Love Marlborough said: “We have an enthusiastic, willing and active committee, but none of us had experience of running a co-operative.

“We were becoming bogged down in governance, policies and financial planning, which was keeping us from concentrating on our original aims – to sustainably deliver arts and cultural events in the town.

“The help we have received from the Co-operative Enterprise Hub has allowed us to concentrate on delivering arts and cultural services in Marlborough and the surrounding villages, including drama and art clubs in schools, our summer street art markets, comedy nights and a range of cultural events to support the switching-on of the town’s Christmas lights, which takes place on Thursday, November 26.”

The enterprise hub is a new initiative from The Co-operative to support and develop new and existing co-operative businesses, with the aim of growing the co-operative economy - worth £27.4 billion last year - and creating more ethically-led businesses, which currently employ 237,000 people across almost 5,000 companies.

The support was delivered by Gloucester-based Co-operative Futures, which was founded and has been funded for almost 10 years by the Midcounties Co-operative Ltd to promote and support the co-operative business model across Gloucestershire, Swindon, Wiltshire and Oxfordshire.

In addition, Co-operatives West Midlands recently invited Co-operative Futures to expand its support service into the parts of the West Midlands that have not had any specialist co-operative development agency coverage.

Co-operative Futures development director Jim Pettipher explained: "The hub allows existing co-operatives to apply for up to five days' worth of professional help and advice.

"Funding is also available to co-operative start-ups or companies that want to adopt the co-operative model.

"Co-operative Futures has taken a leadership role in the establishment of the this initiative, which will be rolled out nationally, and follows the lead given by Midcounties Co-operative Ltd over many years in supporting existing co-operatives and creating new ones."

Anyone interested in starting or growing a business that is a co-operative or community owned enterprise, or accessing help and support through the Co-operative Enterprise Hub, can contact Jim Pettipher at Co-operative Futures on 0845 456 2506 or at info@co-operativefutures.coop

Pictured: Back (l-r) Anna Sexton, chairman, Peter Davison, Jim Pettipher of Co-operative Futures, Louise Rennie. Front (l-r) Diana Turnbull, John Yates, treasurer, Louisa Davison, company secretary