We launched the Lead the Change programme, funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, in 2014 to develop a locally based, scalable and sustainable ecosystem of support for social entrepreneurs to help them to start up and thrive.
To achieve this, we partnered with 12 not-for-profit community and voluntary organisations in the north of England, the Midlands, and Northern Ireland – primarily in areas of greatest disadvantage. These delivery partners already had established trust and reach into their local communities. We provided financial and non-financial support (which included peer support events and action learning sets) so that partners could find, fund and support social entrepreneurs with awards.
Who were the partners?
The impact
The Lead the Change partners supported 239 social entrepreneurs to start up and grow.
57,405
People helped by Lead the Change award winners during the programme.
100%
of partners reported to have more capacity to support social entrepreneurs after partnering with UnLtd. This enabled partners to grow.
7 out of 12
Partners have secured further support from UnLtd through other programmes showing that there is a clear appetite to continue the work.
