Community shares investment is different. Instead of turning to the private sector and wealthy individuals for support, community investment is about engaging communities to invest in themselves.
By harnessing the collective investment powers of whole communities, large amounts of capital can be raised in small sums from members of the community.
Be it a small village shop or large scale housing development, a community recycling project or major renewable energy scheme, they all have one thing in common – actively committed and motivated members who recognise the wider benefits of communities investing and engaging in their own solutions. To find out more about who have issued shares in this way visit the directory.
The Community Shares action learning research project is examining the potential of community shares and bonds as a way to attract extra investment. Ten social enterprises have been invited to test the idea, looking at barriers that could restrict their growth and how they can be overcome.
More information on Community Shares on their website:
http://www.communityshares.org.uk/
And a local community shares offer is currently underway from More Renewables