Four of the UK’s larger housing organisations have joined forces to launch a new funding initiative specifically aimed at backing charitable organisations and socially-minded businesses.
The Community Impact Partnership (CIP) is the first joint venture of its kind in the UK housing sector and is launching its first £3m social investment fund which will boost communities and support local regeneration. This first £3m fund is supported by the Growth Fund which is managed by Access – the Foundation for Social Investment with funding from the Big Lottery Fund and Big Society Capital.
The CIP has been set up between Clarion Housing Group, L&Q, Orbit and the Peabody Group to offer unsecured loans of between £25,000 and £150,000 to social enterprises and charities achieving positive social and economic impact in communities served by the four partners.
Penny Hembrow, chair of the Community Impact Partnership, explained: “All four housing groups involved in this partnership already provide £30m worth of community investment through grants and services to support the communities they serve. But by coming together, through Community Impact Partnership, they can now provide a new form of finance to help those communities even further.
