- Investment will be used for affordable housing and community assets
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Church of England’s Social Impact Investment Programme invest in Resonance Community Developers Fund
- Fund size reaches £27m at second close
Social impact investor Resonance has secured £2.5m of new investment into its Resonance Community Developers (RCD) fund, bringing the fund to £27m at second close.
The latest capital commitments come from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) and the Archbishops’ Council (which manages the Church of England’s Social Impact Investment Programme) – both joining anchor investor Better Society Capital.
The RCD fund also benefits from grant agreements with the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), and Access – the Foundation for Social Investment, who have provided match funding to attract a range of private investors.
RCD then channels blended finance into communities facing economic and social disadvantage to support community-led affordable housing and helping save and protect vital neighbourhood assets.
Capital has previously been deployed into projects, such as affordable housing for local people, supported housing for vulnerable groups, solar power for community buildings, a community pub and youth education in underserved areas.
Ben Wrigley, Resonance’s Deputy Head of Developing Communities, said: “The latest investment reflects the growing confidence we’re seeing in impact-driven investment to address social challenges.
“The commitment from Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Archbishops’ Council brings fresh investment that allows us to quickly put more capital to work. We are backing communities across England to deliver much-needed housing and other community projects with patient capital and operational support when required.
“Our investors value the social impact generated by community investment, alongside sustainable returns.”
The RCD fund targets investments that generate stable long-term returns while delivering social outcomes, aligning with a growing demand for investment aimed at addressing societal inequalities.
Earlier this year, MHCLG provided a £20m grant commitment to RCD comprising £14m of match funding to attract private investment, alongside an additional £6m for land acquisition.
Denise Holle, Head of Social Investment at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said:
“In 2025, JRF marked its first decade of making social investments, and we are delighted to begin our second decade of deploying purpose-led capital with an investment in Resonance Community Developers.
“By helping community groups acquire local assets to meet local needs, RCD is closely aligned with JRF’s mission to support the transition to a more equitable future, free from poverty, where people and planet can flourish.
“We are impressed by RCD’s track record supporting nearly 40 community groups on their journey towards community ownership since 2021, and excited by its potential to scale further with additional investment from JRF and others to help realise systemic change.”
Vanessa Morphet, Head of Social Impact Investment at the Archbishops’ Council, added: “RCD delivers on our core impact goals by supporting local communities to develop and own housing, renewable energy and other community assets which directly address local needs and build community skills and engagement.
“RCD combines our repayable finance with grant funding and operational resource, which is so critical to getting these community projects off the ground.”
Resonance currently manages over £440m of investment, with social impact funds that invest in solutions to homelessness, community development and social enterprise.
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About Resonance Community Developers (RCD)
Resonance Community Developers (RCD) is a social investment fund. It was designed to support communities to create and own assets that meet local needs and help to build community cohesion, by investing in community-led affordable homes and facilities that benefit the whole community.
The fund’s vision is for all communities to feel empowered, create local solutions, become asset owners and contribute to place-making, economic resilience and tackling inequalities.
RCD supports new and established community enterprises structured as Community Benefit Societies or similar legal entities, investing in pre-development feasibility, land acquisition and construction. RCD has been developed to work with communities to deliver the assets they need to develop and become more resilient.
The fund invests in:
- Affordable homes
- Sports and leisure facilities
- Low-carbon and renewable energy generation
- Other community assets
About the Church of England’s Social Impact Investment Programme
The Church of England’s Social Impact Investment Programme was established in 2020 to direct capital towards new solutions to deep-rooted social challenges in the UK. The £25m Programme is managed by the Archbishops’ Council and aims to mobilise capital and to support vulnerable and marginalised communities through its themes of addressing housing need, enabling communities to thrive, and supporting a just energy transition.
About the Joseph Rowntree Foundation
At the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, we work to speed up and support the transition to a future free from poverty, in which people and planet can flourish.
Since 2015, 5% (currently set at £20 million) of JRF’s endowment has been allocated to social investment. Our social investments are a mix of direct investments (from JRF to charities and social enterprises) and indirect fund investments (from JRF to fund managers, who then invest on to charities and social enterprises).
We define poverty as when a person’s resources (mainly their material resources) are not sufficient to meet their minimum needs (including social participation).