In this debate, two ‘teams’ took opposing (and in some cases deliberately exaggerated) positions to explore how we could resolve the tensions between investors with very different motivations and viewpoints – those focused on philanthropic (“impact first”) and commercial (“finance first”) capital. 

In this debate, two ‘teams’ took opposing (and in some cases deliberately exaggerated) positions to explore how we could resolve the tensions between investors with very different motivations and viewpoints – those focused on philanthropic (“impact first”) and commercial (“finance first”) capital. 

How can we provide more patient, affordable, risk-tolerant and flexible finance to social enterprises?

The pipeline for social investment will never materialise if small charities and social enterprises do not have the confidence and skills to look at the options it might offer them. In this ‘Conversation for Change’, delegates explored if venture philanthropy could be the answer. 

What are we doing to ease the investment journey for investees? Though many social enterprises and charities are satisfied with their social investment application process, this session discovered that there are some unhappy customers – and explored where some social investors might be going wrong… 

CASE, the Co-operative and Social Enterprise Development Agency in Leicester, hosted a session to explore the next steps for impact investing in Leicestershire – the ‘host’ county for this edition of The Gathering. In particular, the discussion considered why the county is currently a ‘cold spot’ for social investment and how repayable finance, public money and philanthropic funding can be maximised to help achieve social change for the people of Leicester and Leicestershire.

With the chaos caused by the 2008 financial crash paired with continuing development in finance technology, more people have been moving away from traditional savings markets to explore how they can become investors. This session explored this shift towards “democratisation” through a range of different social investment platforms and initiatives. 

How can we make social investment more accessible to a diverse client base? The Encouraging New Voices session shone a spotlight on a number of initiatives addressing a lack of diversity in the social investment sector. The Diversity Forum, Voice4Change, Dartington Hall Trust and Hatch shared their perspectives on what needs to be done to move the sector closer to solving this issue. 

At a time of austerity in public services, there is an even stronger case to work collaboratively. How can we get local authorities to buy into what we do as investors? Who are the commissioners enabling positive change and what can we learn from them or do to support them?