Abri, one of the south’s largest housing providers, is pleased to announce it has received a further €155,500 in funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) to continue to deliver self-employment training and up to two years of post-course support.
The funding has been awarded as part of Project Increase VS, which is designed to support residents in social housing turn their business ideas into a reality. €10.03m in funding has been distributed amongst housing providers across southern England and northern France to kick-start 1,200 new businesses by December 2022.
With the additional funding Abri has received – which it has boosted with an additional €69,500 – a further 100 people living in the south of England will be able to access support to setup viable businesses.
Michelle Dawson, Managing Director of Community Services at Abri, said: “Employment support and training has always been high on our agenda. And self-employment avenues remains a focus for us too. This year has seen many people experience new challenges at work and we are here to help them to explore new options – potentially ones they might not have thought about before.
“During the challenging landscape of 2020 we’ve seen Create businesses thrive, selling their wares and services online. If we can help more people to achieve this, while also providing traditional employment support, then we hope to make a real difference for communities.”
Create, a bespoke self-employment course by Abri, has already seen lots of people launch businesses. The funding will also enable Abri to launch an ambassador programme, bringing together course graduates to provide peer-to-peer support. This will involve mentoring, training and one-one-one support, with 24 ambassadors already trained who can get started soon.
Alongside offering comprehensive training for anyone looking to launch their own business, Abri is also piloting a pop-up business and retail unit where graduates can sell their goods and promote their services. This means businesses can have a practice run before committing to a long-term rental.
“With the existing funding from the ERDF as part of Project Increase VS, Abri has provided self-employment training to more than 350 people and helped 170 businesses begin trading,” said Michelle. “The range of businesses that have been borne out of this training vary, from wellbeing practitioners to designer makers.
“Our goal is to encourage as many people as possible to turn their great business ideas into a reality, providing the tips, tools, support and networks to do so successfully."
