Hastings Voluntary Action

Hastings Voluntary Action

Project: The East Sussex Social Enterprise Support Service (SESS)
Grant: £31,650

Hastings Voluntary Action will develop a Social Enterprise Support Service (SESS) to strengthen relationships between social enterprises and social investment intermediaries. The service will create a member-led network of social enterprises to gather information, providing training and support, influence policy and promote the social enterprise sector. A key objective will be for the SESS to contribute to regional economic strategies through the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), to better connect social enterprises to social investment intermediaries, and to foster enterprise development for improved financial resilience.

HVA will work with a social enterprise partner Hastings Works (The Work People) to host 4 networking events per year; recruit and train 12 Social Investment Champions to build in-depth knowledge of financial and support opportunities for the social enterprise sector; provide social enterprises with bespoke one-to-one support; and make use of a web-based online forum to develop a learning community of local social entrepreneurs.

HVA expects that the SESS will increase collaboration and support to the local social enterprise sector; raise awareness and take up of social investment; encourage new forms of generating revenue and promote enterprise development as a means to enhance financial resilience.