Scottish Borders Council Accessibility MyScotBorders How can we help you today? Search Home Request Report Pay A-Z of services Coronavirus (COVID-19) Please see our dedicated pages for service updates, information and advice You are here: Home Latest news Borders businesses invited to find out more about new community benefits portal Borders businesses invited to find out more about new community benefits portal Published: Wednesday, 1st December 2021 Local businesses and suppliers are being invited to an event next week to encourage links between good causes and businesses across Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and Borders. Financed through the £1.3bn Edinburgh & South East Scotland City Region Deal, the ESES Communities benefits portal will allow charities and local organisations in the region to make community benefit requests of businesses in the supply chain of both City Region Deal and council projects. The portal will be open to all businesses within the region interested in supporting communities, regardless of they are currently in the public sector supply chain or unfamiliar with community benefits. Details of the event This event will take place on 7 December 2021 between 11am and 12noon for businesses in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and Scottish Borders and will provide more information on the new portal and aim to match suppliers and businesses to good causes in the City Region Deal area. Find more details of the event and register online. Visit the ESES Communities website for more information. More information Community benefits are mandatory clauses in the awarding of most public contracts. Examples include businesses committing to apprenticeships, engagement with schools and using local supply chains. It is hoped the new site can extend support to groups focusing on recreation, wellbeing, the environment and social enterprises. Major projects supported by the City Region Deal include cutting edge new research and innovation facilities at the Universities of Edinburgh, Heriot Watt and Queen Margaret – as well as developing 41,000 new homes and improving transport links across the six local authority areas. The Deal will also deliver new industrial estate units across Fife and the Scottish Borders to support local businesses and create jobs. Claire Pattullo, Chief Executive of Social Enterprise Edinburgh and Chair of the Regional Enterprise Council stated: “Community benefits can help people and communities to understand how they can positively benefit from public spending. There are already many examples within the third sector across the region which show how people and places have gained additional support through local developments. I would encourage all community groups to visit the ESESCommuities.org portal to find out how they can register their request.” More news News archive News RSS feed Media resources Social media Share this information Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Contact us Accessibility statement Terms and disclaimer Site map Cookies Languages Social media © Scottish Borders Council 2021 Designed and Powered by Jadu Facebook Twitter YouTube Flickr Cookie Control Icon