The pandemic has made many of us question and reprioritise our lives, including our careers. If you’re thinking about exploring loans for social investment, Key Fund can help.
Steer your own Ship For many, the last 16 months have left financial or job insecurity. The pandemic has also made us question what’s important in life, and how we rely on our local communities. It’s also thrown a spotlight on the inequalities in society.
Sheffield – Social Investment’s Early Days
Key Fund pioneered Yorkshire Social Investment in Sheffield. It began offering loans for social investment, supported by grants, in response to the collapse of coal and steel industries in south Yorkshire. Its aim was to breathe life back into its neighbourhoods, to support new enterprises and create jobs.
The Social Investment Movement
In 2014, Forbes declared that Millennials “work for purpose, not pay check.” They need meaning, direction and purpose, as well as a balance of altruism and self-interest. This age group, between 25-40, have embraced social investment to help make the world a better place.
Investment for social Enterprise
More people are adapting to the shifting times, and looking at social entrepreneurial ideas to help address the challenges we face.
Key Fund has met demand and expanded its reach from Sheffield, across the North, with Midlands social investment now growing.
On the Frontline
Starting up, and running a social enterprise, like any business, is not always easy. The stories we heard from our clients over the last year or so, show how their drive, passion and purpose have not only helped their business survive lockdown, but saw them become the first responders in their community during Covid-19.
Just one example is Key Fund client, Citizen Coaching. It offers affordable counselling in the Midlands. Social investment has proved crucial to its growth, helping it double its turnover and deliver 20,000 face-to-face counselling sessions via sixty counsellors in 12 languages, supporting over 4,000 people. It used a Key Fund social investment loan to develop its online services in 2018.
Generation Z
Recent analysis suggests the pandemic will radicalise Generation Z – those in their late teens and early twenties. They’ve been dubbed the ‘sacrificed generation’ dealing with the psychological scars of Covid, carrying bigger personal debts, set to pay higher taxes and facing more uncertainty, alongside dealing with a climate emergency. How they respond awaits to be seen, but there’s no doubt they’ll search for alternatives to the status quo.
People Power
Although taking on any loans for social investment can be scary, with the right business planning and support, it’s possible to start your own social enterprise, take control of your career, and address a burning issue.
Whether its food waste and food poverty, homelessness, addiction or reducing landfill waste and carbon emissions, you can profit the planet and run a successful enterprise.
Ready to Respond
When Covid hit, this meant the social enterprise was better placed to pivot its services online. By October 2020, with the increase in mental health issues from the pandemic, Citizen Coaching saw a doubling of referrals. The loan investment and grant support ensured Citizen Coaching survived the lockdowns, while being able to offer its services to people when they needed them most.
Need more inspiration? Check out some of the stories of our amazing clients.