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The Power of Community Business

Name: The Power of Community Business
Start: 2026-02-03T18:00:00+00:00
Location: Chipping Norton Theatre

Presented by: OSEP

0	CHIPPING NORTON: Theatre
P	Tuesday 3rd February, 2026
N	6:00pm

Event information

Are you based in Oxfordshire and thinking of starting a community business? If so, a co-operative might be right for you. This workshop is for groups who are:

Considering taking ownership of a rural asset.

Working to create new services or facilities in their town or village, where there might
be a lack.

Interested in taking on and converting an existing business that might be at risk
through retirement or closure.

The workshop will introduce the coop business model, with a particular focus on community
ownership. You’ll gain a deeper understanding of coops as successful, values based businesses as well
as their purpose and benefits. We will also introduce community shares, a unique way of
raising investment for your community business. Find out if the co-op model suits your
business or community enterprise idea.
Why coops?
All kinds of businesses operate as coops – pubs, energy suppliers, taxi firms, bookstores,
community gardens, wine sellers, farms, sports clubs and much more.
They are run by their members, who can be customers, employees, residents or suppliers –
and who have a say in how the co-op is run, making it a fairer, more collaborative and
democratic way of doing business.
Co-ops are also resilient as a business model. They are more than twice as likely to survive
the early years of trading when compared to other start-up businesses.
What to expect
The workshop will be led by a local Co-operative Development Worker Alice Hemming
from Co-operative Futures.
This informative, interactive and fun session will give you a more in depth understanding of
cooperatives, as well as the next steps for starting one.