We are part of the Westmorland and Furness Green Enterprise Hub, a dynamic initiative dedicated to supporting local organisations on their journey towards decarbonisation and sustainability.

This hub offers tailored expert advice, training and events, grants, and a vibrant network of partners and collaborators, for small and medium-sized businesses and social enterprises.

As part of the W&F Green Enterprise Hub we join forces in our commitment to environmental responsibility whilst developing thriving, forward-thinking organisations.

“Our mission is to empower organisations to reduce their carbon footprint, drive innovation, and unlock the benefits of a cleaner, greener future.”

Meet our partners:

Helpdesk

The helpdesk sits at the centre of the Green Enterprise Hub. If you’re at the start of your journey, it will help you identify and access elements of the support programme that are most useful and relevant for your organisation.

To access helpdesk advice, email [email protected] or phone 01768 210 276.

Consultancy, audits and one-to-one support

Already started on your sustainability journey and need some more detailed advice? A wide range of one-to-one support is available, designed to meet the diverse needs of different businesses and social enterprises.

Training and workshops

We offer a programme of complementary training opportunities that will provide you with the knowledge and skills you need to become a truly green enterprise. It is designed to inspire you, boost your confidence and resilience, and give you practical support to take action on climate change.

To book onto a training course or workshop, discuss this with a helpdesk advisor or book directly here.

Events and networking opportunities

Taking action is easier when you’re not alone. Our events and networking opportunities will encourage informal conversations with both our advisors and people from other organisations striving towards the same goal. It’s a chance to learn, share and be inspired and encouraged.

Success Stories & Resources

A variety of case studies have been produced to enable you to learn from the decarbonisation experiences of other local organisations. You can find them on our Success Stories page.

You can find low carbon food resources and case studies here: Low Carbon Food Programme.

For other resources including webinars, carbon calculators and reports, visit the Cumbria Business Growth Hub.

Find out if you’re eligible

This programme of support is designed for micro, small and medium sized organisations (SMEs), that are based in Westmorland and Furness, and that are either commercial or social enterprises. For detailed eligibility criteria click here.

The support is subsidised by UK Government. When you access different parts of the support, we will let you know the value of the subsidy, and will ask you to confirm that the subsidy does not cause you to breach the subsidy control threshold.

You can find out more about how we use your personal data by reading our Privacy Notice.

Helpdesk Support

Not sure where to start, after a bit of initial advice or keen to find out how this programme would best benefit your organisation?

Make an appointment with one of our helpdesk advisors, or send an enquiry, and they will quickly assess what your organisation needs and what your priorities are. We then get you on the path to the support that’s right for you.

To access helpdesk advice, email greenhub@cafs.org.uk or phone 01768 210 276

Call us

Email us

Want to keep up to date with new opportunities?

Sign up to the Hub Newsletter

The Hub … identified potential energy savings that could reach approximately 7,000 kWh annually, reducing our carbon footprint, and offering the prospect of considerable cost savings … Their professionalism and assistance have been paramount in charting a course for a greener, more cost-effective future.

Jonny Williams, CANDO FM

The audit helped us understand where we were with the building … It flagged up things we hadn’t thought of, like insulating the loft hatches. It has also been really useful to refer to the audit in applications for funds. The auditor was incredibly helpful and patient, he understood the limits of what we could achieve and never sounded too preachy.

Joanne Mowbray, Farfield Mill

Simon was really helpful! We’ve had several meetings previously with sales people about EV chargers that have left us more confused than we started, so it was great to speak to someone impartial and informed! We have a much better understanding of what will work on the site, he was really easy to talk to and really enthusiastic about the project.

Emma Smalley, Basecamp North Lakes / Alpacaly Ever After CIC

Having a strong network of local businesses that are actively engaged in helping each other has been invaluable. It has helped us to identify new ways of becoming sustainable. The more we build and share knowledge across the region, the greater impact we can have on local communities and the places that matter to us.

Julie Doherty, The Plastic Bottles Co.

Upcoming Events, Workshops & Training

View Event

Climate and Carbon Literacy training for individuals and organisations (In person event)

November 14th, 2024 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM

Penrith Methodist Church, Wordsworth Street Penrith CA11 7QY

Join us on International Carbon Literacy Action Day. Delve into the causes of climate change and what we can do about it. Boost understanding with our in-depth, accredited course.

View Event

Carbon Management and Solutions Training

November 27th, 2024 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM

Via Zoom, Online

Take action on your organisation's carbon footprint - gain the skills to adopt a robust approach to net zero and develop a decarbonisation plan.

View Event

Climate and Carbon Literacy training for individuals and organisations (Full day split over 2 half-days)

January 23rd, 2025 9:15 AM to 1:15 PM

Via Zoom, Online

Delve into the causes of climate change and what we can do about it. Boost understanding with our in-depth, accredited course.

View all events

Hear from an attendee of our Carbon Management and Solutions training:

When filling in assessments of our journey towards becoming a greener business, these often feel quite onerous and often inappropriate to a business as small and already green as ours mostly is.

It was helpful to have the 3 Scopes clarified, to be able to discuss what is and what isn’t directly our responsibility, and to think about how to communicate concerning the additional responsibilities we also try to address, e.g. dealing with customers’ waste as opposed to our own business waste.

This may seem trivial but actually it’s very helpful for completing ‘green assessment’ forms and for describing our efforts to customers.

Rosie Dent, Low Greenside Farm Campsite

Eligibility Criteria

This programme of support is designed for micro, small and medium sized organisations, that are based in Westmorland and Furness, and that are either commercial or social enterprises.

In detail, this means:

1. Location: the organisation must either have their business address in Westmorland and Furness, or must be delivering a substantial service in Westmorland and Furness. To receive a capital grant, the site of the investment must be within Westmorland and Furness.

2. Size: small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) are defined by the UK government in terms of number of staff, turnover and balance sheet as set out here.

3. Nature of the organisation: organisations need to be ‘enterprises’ which are ‘engaged in economic activity’, but this can be on a not-for-profit basis. To help define this, we can support businesses that:

Provide easily identifiable and saleable goods or services to customers or clients. Saleable goods or services could include those that are provided below market rate, if the organisation is able to do so through the use of other income, donations or volunteer time.
Have at least one member of staff earning an income from the organisation. The member of staff can be either the business owners or an employee.
Have a bank account.
Are formally constituted, as one of the following:
- Limited companies
- Business partnerships
- Sole traders
- Charitable companies
- Charitable incorporated organisations (CIOs)
- Charitable trusts
- Co-operatives or Mutual ownership models
- Community interest companies (CICs).

The exception is in relation to access onto our Purposeful Start-Up course. It is recognised that start-ups, by nature, are just setting out on a process and therefore do not have to meet this particular criterion to access that course. Is it expected however, that they will be aiming to become an enterprise of some sort in the near future.

4. Sectors: we can support private and charitable sector organisations in any industry. We cannot support public sector organisations, for example, state schools.

5. Specific exclusions do apply:

Faith, political or campaign-based organisations are ineligible. The exception here is if the organisation includes an enterprise ‘arm’, which is accessible to customers or clients of any faith or political standpoint. In these circumstances, support can be provided in relation to that enterprise part of the organisation only.
Housing providers. Bed and breakfasts and holiday-let businesses are eligible for support, provided that the accommodation is bookable for most of the year, i.e. operating as a business for most of the year. We acknowledge that the accommodation might also be the home of the business owner and that demand for accommodation is seasonal.

Subsidy Control

By supporting you through this programme, the Westmorland and Furness Green Enterprise Hub is offering you a Minimum Financial Assistance (MFA) subsidy under the Subsidy Control Act (2022). This applies to both non-financial assistance and grant funding.

You will be informed of the amount of MFA offered (i.e. the value of the particular element of support that you are interested in) when you request it. Before we provide that support to you, we require written confirmation that receipt of the support will not exceed your organisation’s MFA threshold. The threshold is £315,000 of MFA subsidy cumulated over this and the previous two financial years, as specified in section 36(1) of the Subsidy Control Act (2022). Confirmation must be sent by someone who is authorised to do so on behalf of your organisation.

We take this opportunity to remind you that you are required to keep a written record of the amount of MFA subsidy you have received and the date/s when it was received. The written record must be kept for at least three years beginning with the date on which the MFA subsidy was given. This will enable you to respond to future requests from public authorities on how much MFA subsidy you have received and whether you have reached the cumulative threshold.

Privacy Notice

Privacy Notice

We are Cumbria Action for Sustainability.

This Privacy Notice tells you what we are doing with your personal data because of our involvement in the Westmorland and Furness Green Enterprise Hub project, which is running from 1st November 2023 to 31st January 2025.

Why we are disclosing information about you

To deliver our services.

How we ensure that the processing we do is lawful

We cannot use your personal data for any reason unless we have a lawful basis to do so. For this project we use:

The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is a party, or for the taking of steps at the request of the data subject with a view to entering into a contract.

How long do we keep your information?

Details of financial transactions and payments are retained for a period of 7 years.

All partners in the project will keep the details of organisations who take part in any activity related to this project for 2 years after the project ends.

Who do we share your personal information with?

We are part of a consortium of partners who are collectively providing support to organisations through the Westmorland and Furness Green Enterprise Hub. We will share your personal with other partners if they are supporting you, and sharing your personal data will allow us to refer you to them. It will also facilitate the smooth-running of the project, record outputs and outcomes and avoid duplication of records. The project partners are:

Cumbria Action for Sustainability
Cumbria Chamber of Commerce
Cumbria Tourism
Future Fixers
Lancaster University
Green Small Business
CBEN
A Muir Surveying
Verday
Donna Munro Consultant
Simon Brace EV Consulting
Art Gene
Electricity North West

We will also share your organisations’ name with the UK Government, via Westmorland and Furness Council, which is funding the Westmorland and Furness Green Enterprise Hub project. Your organisation’s name may be personal data depending upon the type and name of the organisation. This information is required by Westmorland and Furness Council to prove the effectiveness of the project.

Otherwise we will not share your personal information with any third parties, other than those who perform services for us and who are listed on our CAfS Privacy Notice.

When we share your personal data with these third parties, we require them to take appropriate steps to protect your personal information, and only to use the personal information for the purpose of performing those specific services.

We will never sell or distribute your personal information to any other third parties or make it public unless we have a legal obligation to do so.

Further Information

For information on your rights, how to complain and how to contact us, please refer to our main company our CAfS Privacy Notice.

We are part of the Westmorland & Furness Green Enterprise Hub, a dynamic initiative dedicated to supporting local organisations on their journey towards decarbonisation and sustainability.

This hub offers tailored expert advice, training and events, grants, and a vibrant network of partners and collaborators, for small and medium-sized businesses and social enterprises.

“Our mission is to empower organisations to reduce their carbon footprint, drive innovation, and unlock the benefits of a cleaner, greener future.”