West of England Rural Network

What West of England Rural Network does

West of England Rural Network (WERN) is a UK-registered charity (No. 1146165) and Company Limited by Guarantee founded in 2012 and headquartered in Bristol. It supports rural communities across Bath & North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire, and North Somerset through a portfolio of free services delivered by a network of 15+ Village Agents and specialist project officers. Core offerings include the long-standing Village Agents service (1:1 home visits for practical support and signposting), Tech Ready digital inclusion (1:1 technology support for residents aged 50+), micro-enterprise support (business startup guidance for health and wellbeing services), Rural Housing Enabling (supporting parish councils to secure affordable homes via Community Land Trusts), community transport facilitation, and village halls advice.

WERN's technical infrastructure is minimal: a Squarespace-hosted website, email and Facebook channels, and access to the BSW Integrated Care Record (ICR) for Village Agents to coordinate health and social care. The organisation holds no patents, proprietary technology, or AI/ML capabilities. Service delivery is human-led through trained staff and volunteers, supplemented by community events and partnership working with local authorities, NHS bodies, and voluntary sector organisations.

WERN's business model is grant-dependent. Income derives from restricted grants (National Lottery Community Fund £99,563 in Feb 2026; historical Defra funding), local authority contracts (B&NES Council for micro-enterprise support; North Somerset Council for Tech Ready; South Gloucestershire Council for Village Agents under the Age Well programme), and supplementary donations (e.g., £2,500 Ayvens Bright Futures award). The organisation is a member of the ACRE Network (England's largest rural community support charity grouping of 38 organisations), chairs the West of England Community Transport Network with Voscur, and partners with Curo Housing on the Community Connect service. All services are free to end users; pricing to funders is set via grant terms rather than commercial pricing models.

Name

West of England Rural Network

Legal name

West of England Rural Network

Website

https://wern.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

West of England Rural Network (WERN) is a Bristol-based UK charity founded in 2012 that delivers free rural community support services — including Village Agents home visits, digital inclusion, affordable housing enabling, community transport, and micro-enterprise support — to residents across Bath & North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire, and North Somerset, funded primarily by government and lottery grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rural Community Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Affordable Housing & Community Development (Housing, Community Land Trusts) (BPAGALAC)

Keywords

• Rural community support
• Village agent services
• Digital inclusion programmes
• Affordable housing enabler
• Community transport facilitation

Headquarters

HQ city

Bristol

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: WERN operates primarily through grant funding from government bodies and foundations including Defra, National Lottery Community Fund, and local authorities (Bath & North East Somerset Council, South Gloucestershire Council, North Somerset Council). The organization received a £99,563 restricted grant from National Lottery Community Fund as part of the Reaching Communities England Programme.
2. Membership Fees: WERN is a membership organization. Membership is currently free of charge but provides updates, discounted rates for services/training/events, and voting rights at general meetings.
3. Donations: WERN receives community donations such as the £2,500 Bright Futures donation from Ayvens/Société Générale nominated by a local resident.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

West of England Rural Network (WERN) is a registered charity delivering a coordinated portfolio of free community support services to rural residents, village hall committees, and parish councils across Bath & North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire, and North Somerset. Core offerings include the Village Agents 1:1 home-visit support service, Tech Ready digital inclusion support for over-50s, Micro-enterprise Support, Rural Housing Enabler, Community Transport facilitation, Village Halls Advice & Guidance, and a Community Development Programme.

Product overview

West of England Rural Network (WERN) is a charitable organization offering a coordinated portfolio of community support services rather than a unified software product. The core service portfolio includes the Village Agents Service (providing 1:1 practical support and advice to rural residents), Tech Ready Digital Inclusion Service (helping over-50s with technology), Micro-enterprise Support Service (business startup assistance), Rural Housing Enabler Service, Community Transport Support, Village Halls Advice & Guidance, and a Community Development Programme. Services are delivered directly by staff and volunteers across Bath & North East Somerset, South Gloucestershire, and North Somerset, with most provided free of charge to individuals and community groups.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Village Agents Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Over £175,000 saved for rural households through oil buying scheme
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major, strategic and minor.

• Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWERN is a member of the ACRE Network, England's largest rural grouping of community support charities. This membership allows exchange of knowledge and best practice with 37 similar organisations across the country, as well as having a voice nationally through ACRE.
• West of England Combined Authority (WECA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWECA is a key partner working with WERN on rural transport solutions including sponsoring West Local rural bus services. WERN is working to ensure rural community needs are factored into WECA's Transport Vision.
• Community CatalystsstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrevious partner in operating the micro-enterprise support service which was transferred to WERN in April 2026. WERN continues to reference Community Catalysts model in its micro-enterprise work.
• Curo HousingstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in running North Somerset's 'Community Connect' service, integrating Village Agents with broader community support services.
• VoscurstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal support and development agency for Bristol's Voluntary, Community & Social Enterprise sector. Co-runs the West of England Community Transport Network with WERN.
• Tech4Good South WestminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization helping share learning about digital inclusion initiatives across the South West region.
• West of England Community Transport NetworkstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork facilitated by WERN and Voscur bringing together community transport providers to exchange ideas and tackle common issues.
• CVS South GloucestershireminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal infrastructure organization for voluntary and community sector in South Gloucestershire.
• Voluntary Action North Somerset (VANS)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal infrastructure organization supporting voluntary action in North Somerset.
• VSCE Alliance BNSSGminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVoluntary, Community and Social Enterprise Alliance for Bristol, North Somerset, and South Gloucestershire.
• 3SGminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInfrastructure organization supporting the voluntary and community sector in South Gloucestershire.
• HCRG Care GroupminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealth and care provider organization listed as partner/funder working with WERN.
• Cam Valley RotaryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal Rotary club engaged with WERN's community work, including referring clients to Village Agents.
• The Keepers – Wotton Area Community HubstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal community organization partnering with WERN to host community events like 'Charfield Community Connections' bringing services to rural residents.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Rural Services Network: Membership organisation advocating for rural service providers and communities across England. Comparable in advocating for rural service sustainability, including housing, transport, and digital inclusion — the same challenges WERN tackles operationally.
• Good Things Foundation: National digital inclusion charity running the Learn My Way/Online Centres Network. WERN's Tech Ready Digital Inclusion Service for the over-50s in rural North Somerset addresses the same digital exclusion agenda at a sub-regional level.
• Locality: National membership body for community-led organisations including community centres, social enterprises, and neighbourhood services. Locality shares WERN's community development remit but operates at significantly greater scale and across urban as well as rural areas.
• Groundwork UK: Federation of trusts delivering community regeneration, green-space, and social prescribing programmes across England. Compare-and-contrast partner working on community development and place-based services in similar geographies to WERN.
• Age UK: National charity supporting older people with advice, information, and services. WERN's Village Agents service — which primarily serves rural residents aged 50+ with benefits navigation, healthcare access, and independence — sits within the same thematic space as Age UK's local Information & Advice services.
• Community Transport Association (CTA): UK membership association for community transport operators. WERN chairs the West of England Community Transport Network and supports community transport schemes; CTA is the national equivalent and trade body, addressing the same volunteer-driver and rural access challenges.
• Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE): National umbrella body for 38 rural community support charities including WERN. ACRE operates at a national policy level and convenes the Village Hall Week and Rural Housing Week campaigns in which WERN participates; the new WERN CEO joined from ACRE. Highly comparable mission and constituency.

Direct peers

• National Community Land Trust Network (National CLT Network): National body supporting Community Land Trusts across England and Wales. WERN's Rural Housing Enabler service directly supports parish councils and communities to set up CLTs such as Marshfield CLT, making this network the closest functional peer for that service line.
• Community Catalysts: UK social enterprise that supports people to set up small, community-based services and micro-enterprises. Until April 2026, Community Catalysts co-operated the B&NES micro-enterprise service before transferring it to WERN; they continue to operate sister programmes in other regions, making them the most direct functional peer for WERN's micro-enterprise offer.
• Plunkett UK: National charity supporting rural community-owned businesses such as village shops, pubs, and community hubs. Plunkett's mission of enabling rural communities to run their own enterprises and services is closely aligned with WERN's community development, village halls, and micro-enterprise work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/WestofEnglandRuralNetwork
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/west-of-england-rural-network

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about West of England Rural Network