A Tyneside community bakery is on the rise after winning a five-figure investment to help scale up its retail and trading operations.
Big River Bakery was originally launched eight years ago by Andy Haddon while he was working as a senior researcher at Newcastle University’s Sustainability Institute, and began life as a volunteer-run bakery, selling loaves on Saturday mornings in Wylam library.
Now based in Newcastle, the social enterprise specialises in handmade breads, savoury goods and sweet treats made with British flours and local ingredients, while also aiming to contribute to the well-being of its community by sharing the skills of its bakery team.
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Having successfully completed a crowdfunding campaign at the end of last year to support a move into larger premises, Big River Bakery relocated to a new base on Wretham Place in Shieldfield, which combines a production facility, café, retail space and training hub.
Now the bakery has worked with regional fund management firm NEL Fund Managers to secure a £25,000 investment from the North East Small Loan Fund to purchase additional baking equipment for its new base which will enable it to expand its operations.
The new equipment was originally due to be installed in the week after lockdown began and was stuck in a factory in Manchester for more than three months, during which time the team refocused activities on supporting its community by delivering food parcels and baking kits to local homes.
The Big River bakers recently came back on site for installation and training on the new equipment, with production ramping up through September.
It launched a new training programme last month for people living in the city who face a range of barriers to employment, which will run for two years and is part of the Community Led Local Development programme, funded through the European Social Investment Fund and Life Chances Fund.
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It focuses on helping adults from Newcastle’s most deprived postcodes through hands-on training in developing baking, barista and shop skills, with the participants’ products being sold through a ‘pay what you feel’ shop every Monday and Tuesday.
The bakery is part of the North East LEP’s Scaleup Programme and has created several new jobs within its growing core team as its operations have expanded. It now has a team of eight, including two staff who are on the autistic spectrum.
Founder Mr Haddon said: “The overall idea behind the project is to make healthy local food affordable for everyone, to use baking as a means of bringing diverse communities together and to help create pathways to employment.
“Moving into the new premises was a huge step for us, and we believe we are unique in the region and possibly in the 海角视频 in having all our different facilities together in a single location.
“While the delays caused by the pandemic have been frustrating, we’re excited to have things back up and running, and by the many new opportunities that lie ahead.
“Scaling up our operations in these bigger premises meant we needed more equipment to meet the customer demand we’re expecting, and NEL’s support was critical in this respect.”
Part of the £120m North East Fund, which is supported by The European Regional Development Fund, the £9m North East Small Loan Fund typically offers loans of between £10,000 and £100,000 to businesses in Tyne and Wear, Durham and Northumberland. It is designed to assist with the creation of over 1,200 new regional jobs in more than 320 SMEs over the life of the fund.
Jonathan Armitage, investment executive at NEL Fund Managers, added: “Big River Bakery is a fantastic business that has a big local impact in several different ways and their ambitions to build on what’s already been achieved are extremely admirable.”