The small community of Kennerleigh are proud to be the shareholders of their own village shop and post office, having raised £53,000 in a short space of time, thanks to the support and generosity of the parishioners.
Devon Communities Together first met Kennerleigh shop in late summer of 2014, although the team had worked with them as far back as 2008 to help the then proprietor set up a model where local people could volunteer shifts in the shop.
In 2014 the proprietor retired so the local community decided to club together to buy and take over the shop. Devon Communities Together advised them on business planning and options for launching a community share offer and part wrote one of their funding bids which was successful.
Devon Communities Foundation awarded a grant which supplied some of the equipment to fit out the shop such as fridge/freezers, scales, notice board etc. This grant also covered a proportion of the new manager’s pay in the first year of business. Altogether the parishioners raised around £50,000 to buy out the shop and took over on the 1st November 2014.
The shop is now fully operational and manned by volunteers/shareholders.