Investec is built on the spirit of entrepreneurship and creating enduring worth. That is why we’re proud to support entrepreneurs who want to make a positive impact in the local community by building sustainable businesses.
According to the Federation of Small Businesses, at the start of 2025, there were 5.64 million small businesses in the UK, which accounted for 99.18% of the total business population. Social enterprises are a small percentage of that ecosystem, but they have an important role to play. They can provide financial independence, improve lives and have a positive impact in local communities.
Our award-winning Investec Beyond Business programme provides mentorship and capital to founder-led social enterprises.
The programme, which operates in East London, is run in partnership with the Bromley by Bow Centre. In 2026, the partnership was recognised at the Better Society Awards, winning Best Local Partnership with a Charity.
Our award-winning Investec Beyond Business programme provides mentorship and capital to founder-led social enterprises.
The programme, which operates in East London, is run in partnership with the Bromley by Bow Centre. In 2026, the partnership was recognised at the Better Society Awards, winning Best Local Partnership with a Charity.
Each year the programme identifies up to five new social enterprises and provides them with an ongoing business support package and funding of up to £24,000. These enterprises tackle a variety of social issues, including youth unemployment, social exclusion, community cohesion, homelessness, mental health, rehabilitation of ex-offenders and food poverty. We also look to encourage engagement from under-represented groups such as women and ethnic minority applicants.
The entrepreneurs receive intensive support, including training and expert advice from volunteers from across Investec.
Since 2011 Investec has committed over £1m to the programme, which has launched 72 social enterprises*, many of them female-led.
The success rate of these social enterprises is impressive: they have generated a combined turnover of circa £10m* and created over 430 jobs*.
* Data provided by Bromley by Bow Centre
Over a hundred entrepreneurs apply to join the programme each year. Following an initial interview, a shortlist is invited to pitch their business ideas to the judging panel. After careful consideration, the panel selects the ventures that will receive funding and ongoing support.
The judging panel for 2026 comprised Ruth Leas, CEO of Investec Bank plc; Dr Marc Kahn, Group Strategy and Sustainability Officer; Nicole Goodwin, Co-Head of UK Origination, Direct Lending; Sir David Holmes CBE, Chief Executive, Family Action; and former Beyond Business winner, Hector Smethurst, Founder and CEO, Appt Health.
Investec Beyond Business supports social entrepreneurs throughout their journey – from helping aspiring founders turn ideas into viable ventures, to backing established enterprises as they grow their impact.
Turning community ideas into sustainable enterprises
Ignite Impact is the foundation programme within Investec Beyond Business, supporting community leaders with promising ideas to tackle social challenges. Through workshops, one-to-one mentoring and peer support, participants build the skills, confidence and business foundations needed to turn community projects into sustainable social enterprises. It creates a pipeline of purpose-driven founders ready to progress in to formal enterprise support and scale their impact.
Helping proven social enterprises scale their impact
The Investec Beyond Business Alumni Growth Fund provides additional financial support to programme winners to fuel growth by building on their achievements to date. Social entrepreneurs who have previously received IBB capital and support, and have been trading for at least two years, are eligible to apply for up to £60,000 in investment.
Launched in 2026, the Fund made its first award to Well Grounded, a social enterprise supported by Investec since 2015. The funding will help expand its model and support its ambition to create 10,000 career opportunities in the coffee sector over the next decade.
Displaced provides early mental health support for migrant and racialised young people in north and east London. Its nine-month UnMute programme builds emotional skills and peer support, then pays participants to lead future groups. The organisation also trains frontline staff to make their work more culturally inclusive.
Looply Planet transforms soft plastic waste into design-led products and branded merchandise. Through its products and hands-on workshops, the business helps organisations reduce waste, involve their people and explore how discarded materials can become useful resources.
Own Your Flair helps neurodivergent people thrive at work and supports employers to include them. Through corporate training, individual coaching and community workshops, the consultancy builds confidence, skills and connections. It is also developing affordable community spaces and accessible group ADHD coaching to reach more people.
Sprigs East connects communities in Tower Hamlets with local growers and affordable, nutritious, pesticide-free food. Through its community-led approach and pay-it-forward model, the business widens access to good food while creating pathways into employment and supporting mental wellbeing.
The Fashion Blueprint tackles textile waste through sustainable fashion events, upcycling workshops and pop-ups. Working with cultural institutions, fashion brands and community groups, the social enterprise helps people give clothing a new life and raises funds for charities supporting young creatives tackling textile waste.
This programme is not only about funding promising initiatives; it’s also about providing visionary entrepreneurs with the tools to build a resilient, competitive and innovative social enterprise that is well positioned to make a positive mark on society. It’s a perfect example that demonstrates that the more you give, the more you get back.
What the winners had to say
“This award will help Displaced reach young people who are managing day to day but need support with their wellbeing, and whose needs haven’t yet been recognised by services, before they reach crisis point. It means we can reach more of them, sooner, and brings us a year closer to the day a council or the NHS commissions this work. Your postcode shouldn’t decide your wellbeing, and your background isn’t a barrier - it’s the lived experience we build on.”
“Winning this award is a huge step forward for Looply. It will allow us to invest in the machinery and production capacity we need to scale and create more opportunities for people to engage with circularity, demonstrating that waste can become a valuable resource.”
“This grant lets me build what my community has been asking me for: a real, affordable space in East London where neurodivergent people can connect, feel seen, and build the confidence and skills to thrive at work.”
“Sprigs East started in a community centre on the Teviot Estate, with a simple belief: families in Tower Hamlets deserve the same quality of food as anyone else. We are thrilled to be backed by Investec Beyond Business, which will enable us to build a permanent space, paid roles for volunteers moving into work, and our first pay-it-forward organic grocer, where every full-price shop will help feed a neighbour. Good food is a basic human right, not a privilege.”
“I am proud to advocate for the reduction of textile waste and to take this mission further with the support of Investec. The aim is to roll out The Fashion Blueprint's Global Fashion, Local Action campaign, helping brands and cultural institutions engage consumers with sustainability initiatives through our upcycling workshops, pop-ups and events. My vision is to create a future where clothing doesn't go from runway to landfill, but where dead stock can be given a new life.”
Investec Beyond Business Alumni
Investec Beyond Business Alumni is a community which brings previous programme winners together to stay connected and support each other. It’s a place to ask questions, offer advice and learn from other social entrepreneurs who understand the journey.
The Investec Beyond Business Alumni is a forum for all former winners of the programme to connect with other alumni and build a network that may just make your journey as a social entrepreneur a little less onerous and a good deal more inspiring.
More Entrepreneurship Partners and Programmes
London
Bromley by Bow Centre
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We Speak
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Wild Mosaic
Investec Group Integrated Sustainability Report 2026
Learn more about our commitment to sustainability in the past financial year.
Do you have an idea for a new social enterprise?
Project grants for charities
We support small and medium-sized charities through grants for specific projects. In the last financial year 2024/25, we allocated £68,322 to 20 charities for initiatives supporting their local communities. These projects included empowering young people to secure long-term employment and implementing financial education programs in primary schools. If you represent a charity that falls under our focus areas – education, entrepreneurship, and/or environment - and are local to one of our UK offices, you may be eligible to apply for a grant. Please read the full criteria below to find out more and get in touch.
Get in touch
Contact us to find out about our Out of the Ordinary sustainability programme.