Social impact investor Resonance has poured fresh investment into a Devon brewery employing people with learning disabilities and autism.
Bottling at the brewery
The Ivybridge Brewing Company have used £25,000 of funding to expand operations into a neighbouring building near the River Erme. The money will help to refurbish its new taproom and increase the size of its brewery and cold room.
A new fermenter has been purchased to keep up with growing demand for their core range of four beers — Erme Pale, Moorland Mosaic, a pilsner lager (PILS 21) and Redlake Red Amber Ale. There are seasonal beers, too, including a honeycomb stout, a porter, and two hazy pales.
The social enterprise has sold more than 10,000 bottles and 16,000 pints across its taproom and at Darts Farm and Greendale Farm shops, The Box, the National Trust, the Watermark, several restaurants and the Arts Centre in Ashburton.
Resonance provided the cash boost via its Resonance Enterprise Investment (REI) fund, which tackles some of the country’s pressing challenges, including health and wellbeing, reducing economic inequality, and the transition to a low-carbon economy.
REI is backed by investors including Unity Trust Bank, Enterprise for Development, and The Ceniarth UK Foundation.
Some of the team outside the brewery
“We’ve realised that our motto, ‘great beer changing lives’, extends beyond the people who come in and work with us,” said Simon Rundle, founder and chief executive of Ivybridge Brewing Co.
“It encompasses all our customers visiting the taproom. Their lives are changed just by experiencing a world where people with learning disabilities and autism work in a welcoming and positive environment.
“The overarching theme is confidence. People who work here all feel confident, and that comes from being part of a community, having friends, solving problems, being proud to make a product. They feel better about themselves.”
The Ivybridge Brewing Co started in a kitchen in a town hall eight years ago, then moved to its new home in the centre of Ivybridge in 2021, before expanding into the building next door.
It currently boasts 16 employees and volunteers, 11 of whom have a learning disability or are neurodiverse. They all gain skills, including customer service, teamwork, and dealing with money, while developing industry skills, such as bottling, cleaning vessels, and learning about the brewing process.
The latter is carried out by head brewer Chris May, with support from master brewer Hugo Anderson and Mark Higgs, who was former general manager at Salcombe Brewery and Exmoor Ales.
Nia and James, of Ivybridge Brewing Co
Nia, 26, who has learning disabilities, works at the brewery and said: “I enjoy meeting new people, helping the customers, and being with my friends. It means a lot to me.”
Jason, 30, who started working there after lockdown, agreed, saying: “I work in the taproom and I do bottling — I like it all. I love the atmosphere here and working with people.”
Boosted by the extension funded by Resonance, the brewery now has space to increase taproom income and develop a supported employment programme that will allow it to take on more trainees, including establishing links with potential employers.
Leila Sharland, head of growing enterprises at Resonance, said: “Companies such as Ivybridge Brewing Company are providing an award-winning product while offering work experience for people who may otherwise face barriers to employment.
“We’re delighted to help the team expand their operations to provide a valuable social enterprise in the heart of the community.”
The REI fund has several exciting investments in the pipeline, ranging from a neurodiversity centre and a food truck signposting mental health services, to an initiative training people experiencing long-term unemployment to work with reused wood.
