Social impact

Chobble is a Community Interest Company, a legal structure specifically designed for businesses that exist to benefit their community rather than to enrich private shareholders.

What "CIC" actually means

Three things, legally:

  1. An asset lock. Any assets the company owns, including any retained profits, are locked in. If Chobble ever shuts down, those assets go to another community-interest body, not to me personally. I can't sell the company, strip it for parts, or flip it for a payday.
  2. A community-interest statement. When I registered the company I had to declare, on the public record, who it's set up to benefit and how. For Chobble, that's small businesses, charities, co-operatives, and community organisations, particularly in Greater Manchester, who need affordable and transparent web development.
  3. Independent regulation. CICs are overseen by the Office of the Regulator of Community Interest Companies. I have to file an annual community-interest report explaining what I've done for the community and how any surplus has been spent.

How that shows up in practice

  • 50% discount for charities, co-operatives, artists, musicians, and sustainable businesses. This is baked into the published prices, not a negotiation.
  • 10% of income donated to the Against Malaria Foundation.
  • Open-source everything. The Chobble Template, my ticketing platform, and my guides are all freely available under free-software licences.
  • Free educational content. Guides and videos published publicly, with no email gate, no upsell, and no hidden agenda.
  • You own what I build. Full source code delivered via GitHub. You can move to any provider at any time.
  • I'll recommend competitors. If you'd be better served by a trusted supplier I know, I'll say so up front.

Who Chobble is set up to serve

In rough order of priority:

  1. Charities and community organisations, particularly in Greater Manchester
  2. Small ethical businesses, including vegan and sustainable businesses
  3. Co-operatives, artists, musicians, and social enterprises
  4. Anyone else who wants a fair deal and a website they own

If you fall into one of these groups and price is a barrier, tell me. The flat rate already has the 50% discount factored in, but I've written off hours before and I'll do it again.

Accountability

Chobble files an annual community-interest report, which is publicly visible at Companies House. If you think I'm acting in a way that's inconsistent with the community-interest status, tell me, and if we can't resolve it, you can raise it with the CIC Regulator directly.

Why I chose this structure

I could have registered Chobble as a normal limited company and pocketed the surplus. The CIC route deliberately makes it harder to do that, because I wanted the business to be legally bound to its principles, not just morally bound to them. Principles written in code are easier to enforce than principles written on a values page.