"In our continued work for women within our network on the Covid recovery agenda, we are delighted to be able to offer our valuable business training courses online."
Jane Binnion
The Growing Club CIC is a not-for-profit organisation, offering a range of business skills training for women, using a creative and alternative peer-support model. Based in Lancaster, Lancashire, the social enterprise has been in operation since 2018, with hundreds of women completing courses.
In response to the Covid pandemic and resulting lockdown situation in 2020, the organisation instantly took to online provision and support for women in business when the usual face-to-face delivery could not continue.
Statistics last year showed that women were one of the social groups hit hardest by the pandemic1, with additional pressures to cope with including unpaid work such as home-schooling and caring responsibilities, along with those many women already running businesses who faced instant closure and lack of financial support. The London School of Economics stated that the UK government “consistently failed” to consider gender impacts on women during its Covid-19 response.
The Growing Club’s continued adaptation to the global situation has allowed the organisation to research and further explore the needs of women in business and women with entrepreneurial skills who would like to start their own business.
Going live on 28th June 2021, Roots and Shoots Online is a six-month training course for women who have just started or would like to start their own business. The course is centred around self-directed learning along with online group work, helping women in their peer group to connect and learn together on their business journeys. The development for the courses was funded by the Walney Extension Community Grant Fund.
Attendees will be able to complete the course at their own pace within each month, through course content videos and tasks to complete.
The second course, Bloom and Grow Online also launches on Monday 28th June. This is a six-month training course, designed for women who have already been running their own business for 12 months or more and who would like to grow their business in a sustainable way.
Women who would benefit most from both of these courses are those who enjoy working as part of a small group of other like-minded women for mutual support. Regular online meet-ups are included each month, which complement the course content, where women will be set goals and tasks to keep them on track with their business, as well as share homework, successes and challenges. Each attendee is paired with another group member to work with throughout the course, as an accountability and support partner. This helps women in business to improve their skills, mindset and network and take charge of their future.
Jane Binnion, director of The Growing Club continued:
“We want to be able to build back better for women, post-pandemic and strive for an equal playing field for women in business in particular. Our new online courses – the popular start-up course, Roots and Shoots, and our business growth course, Bloom and Grow, will allow women running businesses to access self-directed training to help build and grow sustainable businesses, whilst contributing to the economy.”
