What is a community business?

The Booster Fund supports community businesses. Community businesses can be any type of business that trades products and services. This can include shops, energy schemes, transport, farms, community hubs, housing, health care, pubs, sports clubs, gardens or leisure centres, run by local people for the benefit of the local community.

What they all have in common is that they are inclusive and give decision making power to local people and that the profits they generate flow back into the community to deliver positive impact and improve the place.  

We only fund community businesses that have charitable purpose and reinvest their profits for the benefit of the community they serve.  

Community businesses are characterised by these four values: 

Local roots

By local roots we mean a business started and run by local people, that will benefit the community around it.  Community businesses are usually built around the strengths and assets of a place and address the needs of the community of that place. 

Accountable to the local community

A community business gives local people real, ongoing decision making power to shape how the business is run and what it does. This can happen in many ways (for example, membership structure, ownership, broad range of local trustees), but you must be able to show evidence of regular community influence in decision making.  

Trade for the benefit of the local community

Community businesses have a clear trading model and sell services and products in and around their local area. Community businesses create benefits for the local community with their profits and through the way the business is run.   

Broad community impact

Community businesses support the needs of a variety of different groups in their community. They may have a specific focus on a disadvantaged group or support the local community more widely.