The Impact Loans England programme is now available to social enterprises and charities across England with £5 million to lend over the next three years. The funding is available to organisations making a positive difference in their communities, with a focus on providing working capital, hiring new talent, or progressing with business development plans.

Daniel Wilson-Dodd, Head of Lending at Big Issue Invest says, “A lot of great organisations struggle to access small and medium-sized loans but Impact Loans England is here to provide support for those exciting social enterprises and charities.”

One of the first organisations to take advantage of the new finance scheme is Impact Hub Birmingham. It offers office and events space for like-minded social enterprise and arts organisations, hosting one-off workshops and ongoing collaborative projects. The £60,000 loan from Big Issue Invest will be used by Impact Hub Birmingham as working capital to continue their work in the community.

“We were interested in building a better Birmingham, and thought that having a place to bring together lots of organisations with good ideas was a good way of achieving that,” says Andy Reeve, co-founder of Impact Hub Birmingham.

The team behind the Hub has encouraged a range of groups to work together on specific policy challenges and themes, like better childcare. “We’re providing the opportunity for people to work together on a consistent basis,” Reeve explains. “The financial support from Big Issue Invest will allow us to expand what we do.”

The Impact Loans England programme builds on Big Issue Invest’s pioneering experience over the past 10 years, helping social enterprises grow, often by accessing finance for the very first time.

Big Issue Invest anticipates the popularity of this programme and is planning to deliver a deal a week for the first six months after launch. Applications for Impact Loans England are now open on Big Issue Invest’s website.