Leading UK social enterprise buys 28-year-old coffee bar chain, taking on 370 staff, as part of pandemic-assisted acquisition strategy to create more social businesses.
PLUS: Pioneering revenue-based fund launches in Scotland; Back Market raises $335m in “bullish” circular economy market; AU$8m boost for Queensland social enterprises; Dutch trio backs “truly disruptive” AI firm Envision – and more.
Government-backed Covid lending schemes have been a lifeline – but in the long term, high levels of debt cause problems. One solution: transitioning at-risk, viable private businesses into employee or community ownership at scale.
Government sees clear role for impact investing in driving ‘levelling up’ agenda in face of massive social and economic inequality – and financiers are getting on board with the new concept of equality impact investing.
How do you distribute £800m – announced recently as part of the planned expansion of the UK's Dormant Assets Scheme – for maximum social impact? Nick Temple, CEO of the Social Investment Business, has three suggestions.
Social enterprise leaders welcome new funds but warn that rolling out £800m Dormant Assets Scheme without careful planning would be a “massive mistake” – while shadow charities minister says policy is “scraping the barrel”.
New data is released today from one of the UK's earliest social investment funds, the £142m Futurebuilders fund created in 2004. The lessons learned can help us to design the right kind of finance now, writes Social Investment Business CEO Nick Temple.
Be patient, flexible and targeted to areas of need: new data from the UK's £142m Futurebuilders England Fund – launched back in 2004 – suggests lessons for what will make future social investment work.
As foundations plan to boost the UK’s emergency loan fund for social enterprises, our exclusive interview with the UK’s top impact CIO, Jeremy Rogers, reveals that mergers, as well as money, may be needed to save struggling social investors.
