SWCD can guide new start up businesses through the processes of registering a legal organisation, creating business plans, deciding which financing options are right for you,and anything else needed to start your business.

SWCD can support you through the legal and cultural changes needed to convert your business into a co-operative. We can also work with groups looking to do employee buy outs and help you to put together the financial cases needed.

We understand that all businesses have hard times, especially recently with large industry and economic changes. We can help with updating business plans, re-doing feasibility studies and marketing work, and help to re-engage communities.

SWCD provide a complete registration service for a wide range of legal structures.

We can help make sense of the different legal structures and help you identify the most suitable structure to enable your enterprise to flourish.

We can help you to tailor model rules to suit your needs, both from our own set of model rules or any of the other ones out there.

Businesses need funding at different phases of their lifetime. SWCD can help in a number of ways: advising on financial models; raising social investment and Community Shares, and support with grant funding. We can also help you write the business plans that will demonstrate your case to potential investors.

We run Workshops and Networking events in the South West to increase awareness of what Co-operatives and Community Businesses are, think about why we should promote them, and learn who else in the area we can work with. These workshops are open to people interested in starting a community businesses as well as anyone working in Economic Development or Business Support.