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 business.
Our award-winning Investec Beyond Business programme provides mentorship and capital to founder led businesses which are having positive impacts in their local community.
The Investec Beyond Business programme, which operates in East London, is run in partnership with the Bromley by Bow Centre. Each year it 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, vulnerable families, 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.
Apply now to Investec Beyond Business 2025.
Closing date for applications is Sunday 30 March.
The entrepreneurs receive intensive support, including training and expert advice through the Investec Beyond Business College, which is run by volunteers from across the company.
When Investec became the sole funder of Beyond Business in 2011, the programme changed its name to Investec Beyond Business. Since then, it has launched 64 social enterprises*, many of them female-led and from diverse backgrounds. Investec also supported four additional successful businesses between 2008 and 2011, in its role as a junior partner in the programme.
The success rate of these social enterprises is impressive: 67% of them are still in operation after three years, whereas national statistics indicate that 60% of new businesses cease operations within the same timeframe.
Each year numerous entrepreneurs apply to take part in the programme and after an initial interview, a shortlist of 10 enterprises is chosen to pitch to the judging panel. The panel comprises Ruth Leas, CEO of Investec Bank plc, Ria Selvaratnam, Head of Treasury Sales at Investec, Neil Raja Head of Balance Sheet Structuring at Investec as well as Beyond Business alumni, David Schluter, Head of Business Development at Fluid IT and Laura North, founder and CEO at We Speak.
* Data provided by BBBC
INVESTEC BEYOND BUSINESS WINNERS 2024
Hackney Wolves Basketball Club is a community-driven club dedicated to fostering a passion for basketball, boosting participation and providing an inclusive environment for all children to excel. Founded by Nestor Diaz, it offers a holistic coaching approach for children from 5 to 18 to build on-court ability and develop off-court life skills.
Good Nugget, which was founded by Leo Young, is focused on bridging the gap between emerging talent and forward-thinking companies in the branding and marketing industry by championing people of colour. It provides mentoring, training and tailored strategies to empower young creatives to thrive and help businesses build inclusive, dynamic teams.
Will Redgrove founded the Matchbox to connect artists with communities by painting walls together. It facilitates the design and painting of public art by running thought-provoking workshops that engage, involve and guide communities through all stages of the creative process as providing agency to hard-to-reach group has a positive impact on wellbeing and builds cohesion.
Empower Box, which was founded by Valerian Spicer and Bremila Thavarajah, aims to improve outcomes for disadvantaged, hard-to-reach and underrepresented groups – with a particular focus on girls and those with ADHD - by developing the mental resilience, confidence, leadership and life skills of secondary school students in schools through boxing.
What the winners had to say
“As someone who grew up feeling like I didn’t fit in, I know firsthand how valuable support can be. This funding brings us one step closer to ensuring that our vibrant UK creative industry is one where diverse voices are truly celebrated. This funding will enable Good Nugget to open more doors for young talent and provide the mentorship I wish I had when I was starting out."
“This funding will enable The Matchbox to accelerate our ambition to bring collaborative and radical change to the industry. It will create more opportunities for artists, platform more amazing communities and paint more walls with beautiful and colourful art.”
“We are thrilled to be an IBB winner. This will significantly help Empower Box deliver transformative boxing interventions to improve the mental health of disadvantaged pupils in schools and the wider community. The funding and mentoring support offered by Investec will allow us to buy equipment, market our interventions and launch our services into schools and youth centres. It will also help us to launch and deliver empowering workshops to women and girls. IBB gives us a powerful opportunity to launch our social enterprise to the next level.”
“This will help Hackney Wolves Basketball CIC to not only expand our programs but also give more young people high-quality sports training, mentoring, and a nurturing environment for personal growth. This funding will create more opportunities for disadvantaged youth, offering them a positive space to thrive both on and off the court. The impact on our community will be long-lasting, and we are excited to continue working with Investec to drive this change.”
Investec Group sustainability report 2024
Learn more about our commitment to sustainability in the past financial year.
In their words
Investec Beyond Business entrepreneurs share their inspiring stories and community impact.
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 2023/24, we allocated £107,179 to 16 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.
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