Converting to a Co-operative

Are you looking to convert a pre-existing business into a co-operative or community business?
Are you a group of employees looking to buy our a pre-existing business?

About us

Our team has a range of specialist knowledge to help at every stage, including legal registration, feasibility studies, market research, capacity building, detailed analysis and financial modelling and measuring social impact.

The team has many years of experience in social enterprise and SFEDI accredited small business advice.

We have advised enterprises from a range of sectors including, energy, transport, housing, farming and leisure.

How we work with you

Every client is unique and the first thing we need to do is understand you and your situation.

We will then provide some recommendations, and agree the support objectives with you.

We can work with you in informal, exploratory discussions to help you understand the options, or we can create a guided, facilitated programme to take you through all the steps.

The process of conversion

If you are looking to convert or buy out a business, we will need at least 3 people who are ready to be the officers of the new society. Once you have that, we can help with everything else.

We can help you with working out the legal route to conversion, deciding the best way to finance it, and hot to deal with the culture change needed in a community owned business.

Have a look at our Resources and Registration pages to see some of the options for how to set up your community business

If this doesn’t seem like what you need, have a look at the other services we offer or get in touch.

South West Co-operative Development Limited
Registered as a Community Benefit Society: 31193R
Registered office address:
10 East Reach,
Taunton
TA1 3EW
Office phone: 0300 456 2265
Email: development@southwest.coop