We began providing loans to profitable companies in 2019 with the goal of recycling money back into the community. Our loans are sometimes offered as 100% loan and sometimes offered as a part grant/majority loan mix. With the addition of COVID-19 rescue loans, we have now granted 27 loans in total.
With 8 loans fully paid off and 12 loans being actively repaid, a total of £235,754.83 has been recycled back into the fund for distribution thus far. In order to make sure we are not placing any businesses at risk of financial difficulty, we always conduct thorough financial summaries prior to awarding loans. However, we are always aware of the possibility that some businesses may close down or become insolvent for a variety of reasons, so we always encourage them to speak with us about any changes in their circumstances and work to find a solution that will best assist them. Only 4 of the 27 loans that were provided have defaulted thus far (2 of which were Covid-19 rescue loans) resulting in an 85% success rate in repayments so far.
Our loans have been utilised for a variety of business purposes, including start-up expenditures, revenue costs, building improvements, and new machinery and equipment.
Here are some examples of successful projects that have been supported via PyC loans:
Penaluna’s Road Chip- Faster Food– We supported Penaluna’s with £26,000 loan/grant mix so they could open a new mobile shop and attend public events, festivals, and private gatherings.
“We’re extremely grateful the project was assisted and supported by Pen y Cymoedd Wind Farm Community Fund CIC. It helped us firmly establish ourselves in the mobile Fish And Chip shop scene with a quality vehicle which no one else has, it allowed us to include technology and ideas to help the service run easier and includes, no heavy lifting of gas bottles, self-sufficiency on electric with leisure batteries and even solar panels.” – Penaluna’s
Treherbert Pharmacy- We supported Treherbert Pharmacy with £26,000 loan/grant mix to for their Retail/Dispensary Renovation project which would enable them to create an appropriate clinical space to be able to provide upgraded and necessary pharmacy services.
“ We are very pleased with how our pharmacy refit has gone and the response from the community has been amazing and very positive comments”- Treherbert Pharmacy
Coco’s Coffee and Candles- We supported Coco’s Coffee and Candles with £44,100.05 in May majority loan/partial grant to establish a boutique coffee shop and candle making and sales business.
“We’re honestly blown away by the support of the community: we have had queues out the door and we even had to close early sometimes because of demand. There are no words to describe how grateful we are the feedback has been incredible. We are thankful to Pen y Cymoedd for believing in us and supporting our vision.” – Bridie, Coco’s Coffee and Candles
Gentle Care- We supported Gentle Care with £58,141 loan/grant mix which helped with startup costs and provided a financial infusion to sustain cash flow during the first few months of the service’s introduction.
“Without the support from Pen y Cymoedd Community Fund, we would never have been able to launch our service, supporting 22 jobs across the Afan Valley. It has supported us in setting up an office base, creating the foundation for the whole business. It has allowed us to recruit and to expand as we have needed, to meet the needs as they arise. We cannot thank Pen y Cymoedd Community Fund enough” Barbara Trahar Director
A full list of loans awarded can be found here https://penycymoeddcic.cymru/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Vision-Fund-list-July-2024.pdf#
Call to action
We want to know what the community think of PyC offering loans and any thought you may have on our loan process. Please send your feedback to enquiries@penycymoeddcic.cymru
Our Funding Schemes
Micro Fund
We recognise that great ideas can sometimes be realised by the injection of relatively small sums of money at the right time on a one-off basis. The Micro Fund offers grants up to £6,500 to support important aspects of community life and to support enterprise development. This could include, for example: buying small items of equipment; minor capital works; activities, events and projects; business development and start-ups; pilot projects. Micro Grants can help cover the costs of community events, give the finishing touch to a larger scheme or can be the stimulus to a start-up; they can help publicise a service or support feasibility studies to develop bigger schemes.
Vision Fund
The Vision Fund offers grants and loans over £6,500 (capital and/or revenue) to support activities that help to deliver the priorities of the community. New and developing businesses, voluntary sector and community groups can all apply. Although public sector bodies are not eligible, we welcome partnership working.
Applicants will need to show how their proposal:
- is visionary, bold and ambitious
- involves partnership working with others
- is sustainable in the longer term – maximising local value and benefits
- represents value for money
Other ways of working
Where we can see opportunities to work in partnership with other agencies, we can and will.
Examples of this include:
- Working with NPT CVS and Interlink RCT to engage development workers specifically to
support the fund area of benefit.
- 40 community buildings received energy audit surveys working with Coalfields Regeneration
Trust, Interlink RCT, Neath Port Talbot CVS and RCT CBC
Loan Offer
As well as grants we also offer loans to profit making businesses, where appropriate.
We will discuss this with you when you approach the fund.
- When applicable we will also consider ring fencing funding to address themes, commission
projects that are community-led and consider third-party distribution and direct investment.