The Peckham Enterprise Centre, Atwell Road, Peckham
The Peckham Enterprise Centre opened in 1991. The centre concentrated on training, business education and business related skills.
The Peckham Enterprise Centre, part of SLBI, provided free financial counselling, marketing and general business advice as well as training to help put business ideas into practice in Peckham.
Lloyds Bank and the Government Task Force in North Peckham came together to help small businesses through the Peckham Business Development Fund. The Fund provided loans and grants to help people who had a good business idea but were unable to raise finance. The scheme was focused on North Peckham and administered by South London Business Initiative.
As well as providing good advice and access to funding, the Peckham Enterprise Centre also had flexible office space, available to small businesses in the area. Recently refurbished, the PEC had eight offices plus a conference room. The premises had 24 hour access and were fully serviced with fax and photocopying facilities plus secretarial back up. They were furnished, but with no Uniform Business Rates, no premiums, no heat or electricity bills to pay. The rents started at just £50 a week inclusive.
The Peckham Enterprise Centre offices were in the heart of south London with ready access to both the centre of town and the southern home counties. PEC also ran a mobile office in the form of a North Peckham Taskforce caravan, which it used to take business information out into the local community.
The Centre was managed by John Hann and was there to assist any business starting life in Southwark .With initiatives like the PEC business club, set up by local firms with the help of the agency, Peckham Enterprise Centre became a vibrant centre for local business development.