A charity which helped to turn Tuebrook Library, a disused Grade II-listed building, into a thriving community centre with help from a social investor is preparing to mark the building’s 120th anniversary.
The Old Library in Tuebrook had fallen into disrepair when community-based charity Lister Steps took control of the building in 2020. Now thanks to investment from Key Fund, the charity is going from strength to strength, and the historic building is once again a thriving community resource.
Key Fund, a social investment lender which supports businesses and organisations with a social mission, invested in Lister Steps in 2017, and did so again in 2023 with a £60,000 loan for working capital.
The capital helped ensure the charity stayed resilient as National Lottery Heritage Fund investment came to an end. Key Fund’s cash injection helped safeguard three jobs and has enabled Lister Steps to continue as the backbone of the Tuebrook community. The charity’s historic home will mark its 120th anniversary later this month.
Lister Steps’ Board of Trustees, said:
“We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Key Fund for their invaluable support of our charity organisation. Their backing has made a significant impact, enabling us to expand our reach, enhance our services, and make a real difference in the lives of those we support.
“Thanks to their belief in our mission, we’ve been able to keep growing stronger and more sustainable, empowering our community in lasting ways. We are truly grateful for their partnership and investment in our work.”
Matt Smith, CEO of Key Fund, said:
“The transformation of The Old Library is a perfect example of why social investment matters.
“Buildings like this hold the soul of a community, and when paired with the vision and dedication of organisations like Lister Steps, they become something truly powerful.
“We’re proud to have played a part in bringing this space back to life, and even prouder to see it thriving as a hub of opportunity, connection and support in Tuebrook.”
Key Fund has invested in several projects in Liverpool since it was set up 25 years ago in response to the collapse of traditional industries in the north.
The organisation encourages growth and investment in the hardest hit communities and lends to community initiatives that are likely to be turned down by mainstream lenders.
Over the past quarter of a century, Key Fund has helped to create and safeguard over 5,000 jobs, while expanding to invest in over 3,000 different organisations, across towns and cities in the Midlands and North of England. Every £1 of investment delivers impact of at least £4 and 70% of its funding goes into the most disadvantaged areas.
Key Fund’s investment in grants and loans has totalled £76.6 million, which has also unlocked a further £66.5 million of funding.
Other projects in Liverpool that have received Key Fund support include Homebaked Bakery in Anfield which unlocked investment on two separate occasions for working capital and to meet energy costs.
Homebaked Bakery has won multiple awards, featured in local and national media, and received a visit from Mary Berry DBE for a BBC show.
Another local social enterprise to benefit from Key Fund investment is Farm Urban, a vertical hydroponic farming business which hit a stumbling block when public sector contracts were heavily delayed.
Its founders accessed flexible finance funding to the tune of £150,000 and now Farm Urban grows fresh, healthy produce in a sustainable way in Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle, with 50% donated to food banks, and 50% sold.
Co-Founder Dr Paul Myers said:
“This social investment saved our organisation because of delayed and volatile public sector projects and contracts. The Key Fund money has helped us weather that.
“Basically, without Key Fund’s money, and other social investors that came on board, we wouldn’t be here today; it would have sunk us financially.”
In the last three years alone, Key Fund’s investments in organisations across the North and Midlands have benefitted almost 1.4 million people.
To find out more about Key Fund visit the website.
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