We are looking for a hero to save our bakery. Could it be you or your company ? Who are we ? We are a social enterprise based in North East England and have operated a community bakery for 6 years. We need a long term and larger base to flourish. We have secured a ten-year lease on premises in Shieldfield, Newcastle, from Newcastle City Council that will enable us to scale up our trading and enhance our social impact. We aim to open in the new premises in July 2019, allowing us to build local impact through a series of community events over the summer and ongoing. To fund refurbishment and equipment we are undertaking a crowdfunding campaign https://www.spacehive.com/shieldfield-community-bakery. Why is this project needed ? We have demonstrated demand by running baking workshops and training sessions in schools, community centres and other locations across the region, with hundreds of individuals including people with physical and mental disabilities, across a wide age range. We work with many organisations in and around Shieldfield and numerous letters of support demonstrate a broad demand for further collaboration. We have consulted with residents at a series of local events, collecting unanimously positive responses about the benefits to the community of establishing the bakery in Shieldfield. What will be the impact of the new premises ? This new building will provide a secure, fully accessible base for the next phase of the bakery’s development. ● Expanded training provision services will achieve increased employability and mental health outcomes. ● The larger premises will host an incubator space for local startups and community initiatives in sustainable food, and will improve access for local people to high quality, affordable food. ● We will be able to operate training programmes simultaneously with scaled up bakery production, building the financial resilience of the business. How can you be a hero ? 1. Donate or doughnate! 2. Offer in-kind support such as services or equipment . 3. Come on one of our baking and brewing courses. A great team-building day and the payment will go towards our crowdfunder. 4. Other ideas? Do you know a hero ?