NESTA Launch Cultural Impact Development Fund

NESTA has launched a new loan finance programme for cultural and creative organisations based in England.

The Cultural Impact Development Fund offers repayable finance between £25,000 and £150,000 to arts, cultural and creative organisations that are committed to improving the quality of their impact practice and evaluation and could benefit from external support with this. It aims to enable ambitious organisations in the arts and cultural sector to take on small-scale repayable finance in order to achieve social outcomes, and to increase the capability of arts and cultural organisations to articulate, achieve, monitor and evaluate their intended social impact.

The Fund is supported by Access - The Foundation for Social Investment through the Growth Fund programme, with finance being provided by its partners Big Lottery Fund and Big Society Capital.

Arts and culture organisations based in England are eligible to apply, including:
•Arts and cultural venues
•Museums, libraries and archives
•Non-venue based organisations (e.g. touring organisations, production companies, festivals, etc.)
•Sector support organisations (e.g. development agencies, workspace providers, cultural education organisations)

Charities, community interest companies and community benefit societies with a recognised charitable purpose are eligible for investment. Other incorporated entities, such as companies limited by shares, will be considered based on the strength of their social mission and whether the majority of their profit will be reinvested into that mission.

The Fund offers unsecured loans (and revenue participation agreements, where appropriate) between £25,000 and £150,000 with repayment term of one to five years and interest rates ranging between 5.5% and 8.5%.

Applications will be accepted until the deadline of 31 August 2021.

For more information visit https://www.nesta.org.uk/project/cultural-impact-development-fund/