The Big Venture Challenge

In the UK, there is a gap in seed finance in the social investment market between start-ups and established social ventures. Big Venture Challenge aims to bridge this gap through providing intensive business support, with first-stage funding of £25,000. Award winners will then have access to a further £150,000 of co-investment seed finance, reducing risk in the early stages of growing a social venture and giving ambitious social entrepreneurs the chance to scale up their impact across the country.

Big Venture Challenge is a unique, new competition, run by UnLtd and primarily funded through The Big Lottery Fund, to find 25 people in England with 25 inspirational ideas to change the world. It is open to people aged 16+ in England, who have a viable, scalable and ambitious business model to drive social change in this country. Social entrepreneurs are individuals who use tools and techniques from the world of business to make a positive impact on society – creating ventures that place emphasis on social good as well as financial return.

UnLtd, the foundation for social entrepreneurs, was set up to support and develop their role as a force for positive change in the United Kingdom. The time is now for these social entrepreneurs to step up and provide alternative solutions to meet increasing social needs, which are exacerbated by public service spending constraints.

How it works

Through a careful selection process, an expert judging panel will choose 25 social entrepreneurs who can demonstrate that they have the business model and ambition to scale their new or existing social venture to the national stage.

The 25 entrepreneurs chosen will receive an initial £25,000 of funding. These winners will then be able to pitch in two stages for a grand total of £150,000 if they can match it with loans or equity from co-investors. This is a solid opportunity for social entrepreneurs and ‘angel’ investors alike: providing an innovative and exciting route to market for business people looking for social investment. In addition to this financial support, the winners will get access to first class business support, networks and mentoring from both UnLtd’s experts and external partners, designed to keep pace with the fastest growing social ventures.

This new approach to social ventures is a pilot model from which UnLtd hopes to gain better insight into seed finance and co-investment opportunities and to work openly with partners to better understand and share the right mix of ingredients needed to scale social ventures successfully.

Applications

Potential applicants can visit www.bigventurechallenge.com from 25 March 2011 to register interest and find out more about how to apply. Applications open on 9 May 2011 and close on 30 June 2011 at 5pm. Shortlisted applicants will be invited to a panel interview in early September, with the final winners announced on 20 September 2011.

• UnLtd is the leading provider of support to social entrepreneurs and offers the largest such network in the world. We resource over 1,000 individuals each year through our core Awards programmes which impact many tens of thousands more. We operate a unique model by investing directly in the individual and provide a package of resources; from funding to ongoing advice, networking and practical support.
• UnLtd Ventures provides specialist support to a number of outstanding entrepreneurs, helping them to scale up or replicate their organisations
• UnLtd Research leads on inspiring and informing action, policy and social change
• UnLtd Connect brings together experienced professionals able to offer pro-bono support to individuals growing a social venture
• UnLtd Advantage is an investment readiness programme that assists social ventures to access the right type of investment for growth
• Live UnLtd is transforming how society views young people and how young people view themselves

We resource community entrepreneurs to start-up; support those with more established ventures to scale up; and are committed to developing an eco-system of support to make it easier for those who need help to find it.

www.UnLtd.org.uk