Developing a Greater Manchester Community Wealth Hub

Overview

In March 2021 the Greater Manchester Independent Inequalities Commission recommended that Greater Manchester should:

Create a Community Wealth Hub to support and grow co-operatives, mutuals, social and community enterprises, staffed by people from the co-operative and community sector who understand the market.

We believe that any Community Wealth Hub should be developed and co-designed with the people and organisations who might benefit from or provide services to the Hub.

We now want to hear your thoughts on the proposals.

We would very much like to hear from:

• People involved in the business support ‘ecosystem’ for enterprises in the social economy in GM
• People involved in running ‘generative businesses’ - social enterprises, trading charities, companies limited by guarantee, community interest companies, social firms, credit unions, community benefit societies, worker co-ops, consumer co-ops, mutuals, community businesses (for profit but social purpose) and employee-owned private businesses…..
• Local authorities and public agencies – who commission and support local businesses
• Voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations with an aspiration to trade
• Larger, private businesses, particularly those with an interest in having more social enterprises or community organisations in their supply chains

What happens next

Our plan over the next 6 months is to:

1. Determine the scope of support for the Hub - services, networks, policy, publications, research.
2. Co-design an operating proposal.
3. Test the proposal and evaluate its likely impact

This work will take place between April and November 2022, at which point we hope to have a clear proposal for the Hub.