Posted 8th November 2013
Big Issue Invest Wins Award for Championing Social Enterprise and Social Investment!
– Big Issue Invest (BII) wins Charity Times 2013 Social Champion Award, demonstrating an outstanding service and commitment to the social enterprise and charity sectors.
– BII, part of The Big Issue Group, supports social enterprises and charities to scale up through the provision of loans and investments, not grants, from £50K to £1m.
– Since its inception BII has invested nearly £20 million in over 160 social enterprises, charities and community organisations throughout the UK.
Big Issue Invest are celebrating their win at the recent Charity Times 2013 Awards. Crowned Social Champion at the Awards Gala at London’s Lancaster London Hotel, the Charity Times Awards are the leading celebration of best practice in the UK charity and not-for-profit sector.
The Social Champion Award was presented to BII for its outstanding service and commitment to the social enterprise sector and its demonstrable positive social impact, which to date includes:
- 160 social enterprises invested in with other £20m of funds
- Over 1.7m lives touched
- 3,200 people sustainably employed
- Over 1,400 people trained
Nigel Kershaw, Chief Executive of Big Issue Invest, said: “We are extremely proud to be named Social Champion at the Charity Times Awards. Big Issue Invest is committed to ensuring that people don’t have to resort to The Big Issue because we’re supporting pioneering social enterprises that are capable of transforming people’s lives.”
John Bird, Founder and Editor in Chief of The Big Issue, said: “It’s great news when we hear that people recognise the power of prevention in the community. My ambition is always to help the homeless to help themselves; but increasingly we have to prevent people falling into homelessness. This is why Big Issue Invest backs sustainable social enterprises and ventures that help tackle poverty and inequality. Prevention! Prevention! Prevention!”
Charity Times judges said: “Big Issue Invest has shown a consistently high impact across a wide-range of social needs and on a wide geographical base with clear evidence of effect across a wide range of organisations.”
The judging panel included Ceri Doyle, Acting Chief Executive of The Big Lottery Fund, Caron Bradshaw, CEO of CFG, Christian Guy, Director of the Centre for Social Justice and Tris Lumley, Head of Development at New Philanthropy Capital.
BII is a social enterprise itself, paying any dividends generated to The Big Issue, also a social enterprise. This structure helps to demonstrate a commitment to social enterprise and creates credibility and empathy with its target markets.