Community Enterprise Loan Fund

Highland Opportunity Limited operates a Community Enterprise Loan Fund (CELF). Its loans are intended to support "non profit distributing" community-based enterprises in the Highlands .

A typical client will be an entity with a constitution, such as a society, club, trust or company which does not pay any dividend or surplus to its owners, but re-invests in the business.

It is expected that many of these will probably be lifeline services which may not be viable as commercial ventures, but would survive and thrive with community support and finance. Other examples may be care organizations, heritage and cultural groups, youth activity, sports teams and so on.

Loans up to £50,000 will be available, at interest rates from 5% to 9% depending on risk and whether security can be provided. Maximum duration of a loan is 7 years. Loans above £50,000 may be considered directly or syndicated with Social Investment Scotland. Decisions will be made by the Directors of Highland Opportunity Limited.

The community enterprise loan fund is managed by a subsidiary company, Highland Opportunity (Communities) Limited.

Applicants should approach Highland Opportunity in the first instance to discuss requirements. Application forms and a CELF brochure are available from the HOL or can be downloaded from the Forms and Documents Page of this website. Prior to considering a loan application, Highland Opportunity will arrange a visit from a Business Advisor to go over the business plan in detail. The reports of the Business Advisor will be considered by the Directors, as part of the application process.

This fund is partly financed by: