Call-out for Development Partners for a new COVID relief fund for social entrepreneurs.

A new fund is coming which will be a consortium of 5 partners (UnLtd, Big Issue Invest, Resonance, School for Social Entrepreneurs and The Key Fund) working across the social enterprise sector to support entrepreneurs to rebuild their businesses and recover their support to communities following the COVID-19 pandemic.

This fund will provide grants and non-financial support (technical assistance) to social enterprises and charities within England. The fund aims to support approximately 500 social enterprises with the key focus on ensuring equitable and inclusive access to and delivery of support.

We are looking for Development Partners who are Black, Asian, Minority ethnic and/ or disabled and or LGBTQIA+ to ensure our outreach is equitable, diverse and compliments our current staff diversity. These partners should also be confident in reaching and empowering communities who are Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, and or Disabled, and or from the LGBTQIA+ community. We also welcome partners who reach communities who are using their lived experience of a social issue to lead change.

We need up to six Development Partners, working with us for 12 months, to help us find, fund and support the most impactful social entrepreneurs in your community, field or local area. The focus of this role will be addressing the demographic, socio-economic and geographic gaps and barriers faced by those from the most marginalised communities in 2020.

Each Development Partner will:

• help us to find the most impactful entrepreneurs in their community, field or geography who need funding and support
• offer pre-, during and post-application support to social enterprises from marginalised communities who need specialist assistance e.g. a disability inclusion partner may need to complete online forms on behalf of blind / dyslexic applicants
• plan and deliver (with UnLtd) advisory support to those referred entrepreneurs who are successful in receiving a grant from the fund
• be available to explore inclusion best practice in your field with the fund
• work with an UnLtd Support Manager to strengthen their own capacity and sustainability

This will increase the diversity of the applications in each round, improve the quality of support to grantees from marginalised or underserved communities and build a stronger infrastructure for entrepreneurs from these communities for the future. It will mean we will fund the most inclusive, sustainable and impactful enterprises.

Each Development Partner will receive a £25k sustainability grant managed through UnLtd. Organisations that apply for Development Partner funding will also be eligible for grants from the fund through the main grant rounds and shared portal. 

Timescale

Closing date for expressions of interest:  20/10/21

Shortlisted sent invitations:  27/10/21

Panel Interviews week commencing:  1/11/21

Commencement of partnership:  8/11/21

Round One portal opens:  25/11/21

Round Two Portal opens:  28/2/22

Requirements

We would welcome expressions of interest from individuals or social enterprises who can demonstrate their suitability in no more than 2,000 words by 12pm on 20/10/2021.

Development Partners must be able to dedicate their own and/or staff time to undertake outreach and then provide support from early November.

Expressions of interest will be assessed using the following criteria, using a scale of 1 (excellent level of evidence) to 5 (little or no evidence):

1. Demonstrable understanding of the economic landscape and impact of the pandemic on the most marginalised communities
2. Evidence of existing trusted networks of social entrepreneurs, charities and community organisations who effectively represent the most marginalised communities in England
3. Specialist and deep knowledge, experience and links into one or more of the most marginalised communities across England
4. Proven track record of developing and/or working with social organisations in line with our Inclusion Targets
5. Understanding of grant funding and social enterprise.

Your expression of interest should be emailed as an attachment (MS Word or PDF) to Amjid Hussain, [email protected] with the subject line ‘EOI New Fund Development Partner’ by 12pm on the 20 October 2021.

Contact Amjid if you would like an informal chat or more information prior to submitting your EOI.