Type: Mixed Grant & Loan
Value: £50k - £1.5m (up to 50% grant)
Location: England
Currently open? : Yes
What is the Flexible Finance Fund?
The Flexible Finance Fund is a partnership between Social Investment Business, The Ubele Initiative and Create Equity. It will be providing £4m of funding and support to 15-25 Black and Racially Minoritised charities and social enterprises in England with a material package of funding and support to help them to grow or take on assets and become more resilient.
Flexible Finance works through providing a flexible grant and support alongside a loan from the Recovery Loan Fund with the grant being up to 100% of the loan value (grant ranges from 50% to 100% of the loan value and is capped at a maximum of £200k) alongside direct support from Ubele or Create Equity through the funding application process. The loan alongside the grant can range from £50k to £1.5m and be repaid over 1 to 6 years.
The fund is supported by the Government guarantee scheme – Recovery Loan Scheme.
Who is it for?
The Recovery Loan Fund with Flexible Finance is for Black and Racially Minoritised charities and social enterprises based in England who are improving people’s lives, or the environment they live in.
Am I eligible?
- Black and Racially Minoritised-led: 51% or above of the organisation’s board and senior management team must be from Black and Racially Minoritised backgrounds.
- Legally constituted and a registered charity or social enterprise.
- Primarily constituted for social benefit improving people’s lives or the environments they live in.
- Operating for at least two years.
- Minimum turnover of £200k in its last financial year.
- Not subject to any insolvency proceedings e.g., winding-up, administration, insolvency, bankruptcy.
- No previous repayable finance: Your organisation must not have received repayable finance of greater than £25k. This excludes Bounce Back Loans.
- Grants are only available for organisations operating in England.
A loan cannot be used to support the following sectors:
- Banks, Building Societies, Non-bank Deposit-taking Organisations.
- Insurers and Reinsurers (excluding Insurance Brokers).
- Public sector bodies.
- State funded primary and secondary schools.
Not sure if this fund is for you? Want to talk about your eligibility or any questions you have about the application process? Complete the form on the right and we will send you information on how to apply.
What could I receive?
Loan
| Product | Blend of loan and grant (grant up to 100% of loan value capped at £200k) |
| Amount | £50k to £1.5m (exclusive of grant) |
| Repayment Term | 1 – 6 years (inclusive of any capital repayment holiday) |
| Interest Rate | 7.9% fixed per annum |
| Arrangement Fee |
2.5% on loans of £500k or greater |
| Repayment |
|
| Security |
|
| Purpose | Any, excluding refinancing of existing debt |
Flexible Finance Grant
| Product | Unrestricted grant |
| Size | £50k – £200k (ranges from 50% to 100% of the loan amount) |
| Drawdown | Disbursed as a single payment alongside the loan |
How do I apply?
Complete the form on the right and we will send over full information on how to apply for Flexible Finance.
Need Additional Support?
The Ubele Initiative and Create Equity will provide support to Black and Racially Minoritised applicants pre and post application. They can aid in the application process, including support writing the application and work with organisations to gather information needed before Investment Committee. The Ubele Initiative and Create Equity will provide ongoing support for any additional advice or questions that may need answering and the same with post support.
The Ubele Initiative and Create Equity will bring their networks, expertise and understanding to the project, and provide support to organisations throughout the funding application and assessment process.
To find out more, please contact The Ubele Initiative and Create Equity.