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Four green business initiatives across the South West are hoping to generate a total of more than £3million from investors via a major fundraising drive.

Somerset Co-operative Community Land Trust, Bristol Energy Cooperative, Tamar Energy Community and Mustard Seed Property are seeking capital via the “impact investment platform” Ethex to provide community housing and green energy, and are looking for retail investors to support the initiatives.

Somerset Co-operative Community Land Trust is aiming to raise £445,000 to provide affordable housing and urban development. This will help the co-op further develop its site in Taunton and purchase a second site in Wiveliscombe, Somerset, to provide permanently affordable, community-owned homes and working hubs for local social enterprises.

Bristol Energy Cooperative , a not-for-profit, community-owned enterprise, is raising £2million to increase the low carbon energy supply in and around Bristol.

The funds raised will go towards financing a portfolio of renewable energy projects in the Bristol region, with plans in the pipeline for solar roof installations, community microgrids and a 300kWp micro hydro power station.

Tamar Energy Community (TEC) aimed to raise £290,000 to bolster its solar roofs portfolio of renewable energy installations across West Devon.

The community-owned rooftop solar arrays are generating green energy in and around the Tamar Valley, supplying excess income to a community benefit fund that delivers green solutions to energy efficiency and fuel poverty issues in the area. TEC already reached its goal and investments closed within a few days.

Mustard Seed Property houses and supports people with learning or mental health issues struggling to cope with the growing pressures of everyday life. It is aiming to raise £600,000, which will go towards the refurbishment of a recently purchased second property and to the purchase and development of a third, enabling the organisation to house up to 20 more vulnerable adults each year who might otherwise be at risk of homelessness.

Since 2013, Ethex has enabled more than 16,000 people to invest from just £50 in more than 100 organisations, providing them with more than £75million in finance for developments such as new renewable energy projects, affordable housing, sustainable transport infrastructure, sustainable food and agriculture projects and community services.

Lisa Ashford, CEO of Ethex, said: “The debate around the right approach to combating the climate crisis and the lack of affordable and sustainable housing has intensified in recent weeks and we are increasingly seeing a need for more local, community-led initiatives both to raise awareness of the issues and to take direct action.

“This puts change back in the hands of local communities and there is clearly a significant appetite amongst investors in the South West to support these kinds of sustainable initiatives. The benefits are clear for investors, for these community-led initiatives and for the planet.”