BEDF’s purpose
Some people cannot get a business loan. Due to inexperience, a poor credit rating or other personal factors they are seen as a high risk for lending. BEDF is designed particularly to help people and businesses that, for whatever reason, are unable to get loans from the usual sources such as banks. We provide loan finance to plug that gap. We help businesses and enterprises in Bristol and the surrounding areas of the West country. This contributes to the number of new businesses set up and helps them grow and expand therefore improving employment and the local economy
Our achievements to date
- We have lent £1.5m
- This has levered in an additional £2.4m of finance as a result of our loans
- We have helped 354 businesses to start and expand
- At least 1,200 jobs have been created as a result of BEDF loans
These figures continue to grow month by month as we continue to agree new loans
Independent and not for profit
- BEDF was set up in 1992 as a ‘not for private profit’ company and is completely independent
- The Board of Directors is made up of volunteers with business and finance experience but they have no personal financial stake in the company
- BEDF is not formally connected to any other organisation or to any local Council
- The Loan Panel which makes the decision whether or not to lend is made up of volunteers from business support agencies and business community
Our origins
BEDF invests in businesses and the economy of Bristol and the West Country. It was set up to offer business finance to inner city Bristol residents following the Scarman Report which had, amongst other things, highlighted the difficulty of finding business finance in the area. The original lending fund came from the Government’s Inner City Task Force, Lloyds Bank and Bristol City Council. At first BEDF’s local patch was restricted to inner city Bristol but over the last decade it's changed and expanded to include the whole of Bristol and the surrounding areas
Click here to view the map on the How to Apply page to see if we cover where you live and run your business
Partners and links
Bristol Enterprise Development Fund is in partnership with 5 similar organisations across the South West - from Gloucester to Truro - with a view to making business loan finance more readily available to everyone in the region (www.southwestbusinessfinance.co.uk). The partnership also makes sure we are recognised as a vital resource to our local areas and that we have the support and finance needed to survive and become more sustainable. We learn from each other about better ways to draw in new funds and develop our scope and skills
We have local links with:
- Enterprise agencies such as BRAVE (www.brave.org.uk). Applications for loans come to us through these organisations and we work closely with them to promote the Enterprise Loan Fund to potential customers
- Specialist agencies such as Social Enterprise Works (www.socialenterpriseworks.org), Bristol East Side Traders (www.bristoleastsidetraders.co.uk), The Prince's Trust (www.princes-trust.org.uk) and CSV (who support unemployed people who want to become self-employed) (www.csvavon.org.uk)
- Business Link (www.gwebusinesswest.co.uk) and their individual business advisers
- The Jobcentres which pass on to us the details of people who are interested in starting up a new business
- The high street banks and other business lenders if they say 'No' to a loan. We work with them to make sure they know about our fund and pass the information on to new business banking clients if the bank can't lend the finance needed
- Bristol Credit Union (www.bristolcreditunion.org) who offer banking services to some customers during their first six months trading
- The City of Bristol College business NVQ team who alongside their study, help people develop their business plans and ways to finance them
Member of CDFA
BEDF is a Charter Member of the national professional association for community loan funds - The Community Development Finance Association (www.cdfa.org.uk). We adhere to their code of practice and benefit from:
- their training programme
- links to other lending organisations to share good practice
- the quality standards they develop and set for our sector
- the CDFA explaining to regional and national government the need to support and promote community based lending for business
Our business supporters
BEDF works closely with and is supported by many business organisations in the area. We are grateful for their help and for the volunteers from the local business community who make up the BEDF Loan Panel
In particular Burges Salmon solicitors and Lloyds TSB Business Banking help us by giving us their time and valuable professional advice