Resonance - Twenty Years Of Impact - Report - Page 62
COMMUNITY BENEFIT SOCIETIES ACCEPTED
AS LEGAL FORMS, TO BE RUN ENTIRELY
FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE COMMUNITY
IN THE NEWS...
• Edward Snowden releases classified documents concerning mass
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• Parliament passes the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act which introduces
civil marriage for same-sex couples in England and Wales.
• Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher dies
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beating Novak Djokovic
C 7.5K
co-operatives and community benefit societies in the UK12
SEBASTIAN PARSONS
STOCKWOOD CBS
Blending community assets to support
sustainable farming
Stockwood Community Benefit Society owns 150 acres
of North Worcestershire which is farmed organically
and biodynamically. The Society also owns a small rural
business park on the farm which provides employment
for around 100 people, and a district renewable heating
plant and solar panels. Rental plus energy income totals
around £300,000.
With over 400 members and over £1.4 million of shareholder investment,
Stockwood is a beacon example of community ownership. The income from the
business park pays our investors a return – 5% every year since we started in 2014.
Today, Stockwood is well established and used as an exemplar, but when it was
first conceived no one had ever thought of blending community assets to support
sustainable farming. It might never have come about were it not for the support of
Daniel Brewer and his team at Resonance.
I met Daniel over fish and chips in the Little Chef just off the Stroud exit of the
M5. He quickly grasped the plan and before long we had the business plan fully
outlined on one of their rather small napkins. We founded the Society in 2012 and
purchased the assets in 2014. During those two years we had to work out how to
explain our plan and reach out to the community to appeal for new members.
Resonance supported us all the way.
A shared journey towards sustainability
First off, we had to transform the napkin into something rather more substantial.
It took months of careful work to focus in on our core message. In the end,
it was simple: a shared journey towards sustainability travelled by our whole
community, from our business unit tenants to our future investors. We also
had to develop the financial side of the business plan, legal application forms,
a marketing campaign, a website and all the brochures. I had entered the world
of “due diligence” as investors and lenders followed up their initial interest and
sought detailed examination of our offer and prospects. The share offer document
was pored over, questions formulated, the farm was walked, arms were waved,
the vision explained, and investment steadily flowed into the newly opened
Stockwood Community Benefit Society bank account.
Daniel and Resonance helped us explain our vision, helped us create the
necessary documents and guided us as we created our first Board. Daniel
introduced many people to Stockwood, he sat in on many investor meetings and
his clear calm explanations set out step by step how we planned to achieve our
goals. Later on, once the Society was up and running, we turned our attention to
building a renewable energy district heating system for the business park. This
time we were able to use the Social Investment Tax Relief to offer investors a tax
efficient bond that saved Stockwood money. The start-up journey was a model for
this project, and we were soon embedding a 10km pipe into our fields to source
heat for our tenants. Resonance is still Stockwood’s key partner and even now,
we are working together on the next business plan and share offer. By simply
doubling our community investment we will pay off our (ethical) bank debt,
increasing our cash flow, opening the next chapter in the story of Stockwood
Community Benefit Society – our Learning on the Land project.
“RESONANCE IS STILL STOCKWOOD’S
KEY PARTNER, EVEN NOW WE ARE
WORKING TOGETHER ON THE NEXT
BUSINESS PLAN AND SHARE OFFER.”
SEBASTIAN PARSONS,
STOCKWOOD CBS
Source:
12. Financial Services Authority 2013
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