Power to Change has announced a rebrand and revision of its purpose, saying that it will now focus primarily on advocating on behalf of community businesses at a national level.
The charity, which was founded in 2015 as a funder of community businesses, now calls itself a “think-do tank” and claims it will deliver a “stronger voice in Westminster and beyond”. Its rebrand has cost around £23,000.
Three years ago, Power to Change secured £20m from the National Lottery Community Fund to continue its work until at least 2026, after previously planning to wind down by 2022.
At the time, it signalled its intention to move away from direct grant-making to wider community business support, adding that it would pursue plans to cut its staff by almost half, from around 50, despite the funding boost.
The organisation confirmed to Civil Society that it now employs 24 people at its London and Bristol offices, and has no plans to increase its staffing budget.
‘Project funding alone not enough’
Power to Change defines community businesses as organisations trading products and services for the benefit of a local area – for example, by running local facilities or taking ownership of community buildings.
In its announcement this week, the organisation said it would be drawing on its experience over the past decade to work with the new government and “lobby for the political framework to support community businesses to support communities to rebuild”.
Labour has pledged to grant further powers, via its English devolution bill, to combined authorities, with the bill to include a “community right to buy” to prevent assets such as empty shops, pubs and community spaces being lost.
“We know that, while incredibly important, project funding alone cannot ensure community businesses thrive and deliver widespread benefit for neighbourhoods and towns,” said Tim Davies-Pugh, the organisation’s chief executive.
“We need a political framework and local and national policy which supports this growth,” he added. “That’s why, through working with community businesses, we’ve listened, observed and evaluated what works and what doesn’t.”
Davies-Pugh said Power to Change would now provide a “vital bridge” between work taking place at a local level and decisions being made in Westminster, “as we push for a society that embraces the bottom up, rather than the top down”.
Power to Change said that over the next few months, it will produce a paper on how to deliver the community right to buy, and a project exploring barriers to community involvement in high street renewal.
The charity said it would also be sharing lessons from its work with combined authorities to develop social economies as part of local growth plans.
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