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Revamping a business plan
for a grassroots charity in Leeds

Holbeck Together is a well-established community anchor organisation.

In late 2023, Holbeck Together contacted ThinkforWellbeing when they faced a pivotal moment. Leeds Council had successfully secured levelling up funding for the area, which would enable them to renovate two large local buildings.

Operating in one of the most deprived areas of Leeds, Holbeck Together have earned the trust and respect of local individuals, communities, and partners alike. They are deeply committed to providing the people of Holbeck with a range of opportunities to improve their social, economic, physical and mental wellbeing.

Acquiring Leeds Building Society Building (The Old Box Office) and St. Matthews Community would enable them to broaden their community outreach, empower more Holbeck residents and realise enterprising opportunities for future sustainability for the charity.

To secure the buildings Holbeck Together needed to present a robust business plan demonstrating their capacity to maximise the buildings’ potential for community benefit to Leeds City Council and Leeds Building Society.

The plan had to articulate Holbeck Together’s vision and an operational strategy. In addition it had to be submitted it within tight timelines.

Fortunately, Holbeck Together’s CEO Elissa Newman was introduced to ThinkforWellbeing via Jo’s cross-sector, city wide network, which includes Leeds Building Society.

Community connections and understanding

Given the tight deadline the first step was a review of all existing documents; mining for insights and inspiration to support Holbeck Together’s plans.

Jo drew on the expertise within her network to co-facilitate workshops with the Holbeck Together team and shape a narrative that accurately reflected their unique position and value within the community. The collaborative process of drafting and iterating the plan with Holbeck Together colleagues helped ensure the plan was grounded in their understanding of the community.

Strategic reframing

The reframing of Holbeck Together’s story was a significant contributor to the business plan. It highlighted their deep-rooted trust within the community, built through years of grassroots engagement. This trust is a significant asset, particularly in a community often sceptical of external interventions. Emphasising this in the business plan, illustrated their unique capability to reach and support the community effectively.

Financial modelling

Like most community organisations, Holbeck Together is reliant on grant funding. sustainable financial model for this new project was a must, particularly given the uncertainty around final renovation costs and ongoing operational expenses.

Jo helped them develop a detailed budget with various contingencies and highlighted areas needing further clarification from the council and Building Society. This approach ensured that the plan was realistic yet adaptable to future developments after  feedback from both the Council and the Building Society about existing costs and their ongoing support.

The draft budget gave Holbeck Together’s board the confidence to support this significant expansion of Holbeck Together’s work.

Elissa said:

“Jo has the ability and patience to very quickly understand who we are and what we do. We were constructively challenged to extricate the required information to develop the business plan in a short period of time. This ultimately embedded confidence in the proposed significant project among the Board and the team at Holbeck Together.”

Results

  • A robust business plan, including a detailed financial model and repositioned organisational narrative
  • Confident CEO with a supportive board
  • New and strengthened connections across the Leeds public, private and voluntary sector

The fast-paced project epitomises Jo’s ability to work with grassroots organisations, translating their organic, community-driven initiatives into structured, strategic plans that resonate with both public and private sector stakeholders.

Her approach not only provided immediate solutions but also laid the groundwork for sustained growth and impact in one of Leeds’ most challenging areas.

Next steps

Holbeck Together and ThinkforWellbeing plan to continue working together through the implementation phase for the buildings.

Elissa said:

“It would be an understatement to say ThinkforWellbeing had to hit the ground running. But Jo exceeded our expectations, especially with the powerful and credible narrative developed for the project.”

Contact

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