Pioneers Post

This week in the Pioneers Post newsletter 📩 : 🇬🇧 What the UK impact economy can expect from Labour’s new government 🗣 A voice from... Yemen: can social entrepreneurs help pave the way to peace? 🌐 Taiwan revealed as location of 2025 Social Enterprise World Forum 🌟 Top 100 UK social enterprises revealed Don't miss out, read it now: https://lnkd.in/eeqjxSkA Subscribe here for weekly updates: https://lnkd.in/gDu24DK SEWF - Social Enterprise World Forum C.I.C. | Better Society Capital | Social Enterprise UK | Access - The Foundation for Social Investment | B Lab UK | NatWest Social & Community Capital (registered charity number: 1079626) #socent #impact #newsletter

In our latest Good Leaders podcast episode, Kirsten Dueck, CEO of impact investor NESsT, opens up to Tim West about dealing with ‘imposter syndrome’ as a woman in leadership and how her definition of a good leader has evolved throughout her career. Listen to the full episode 👇 https://buff.ly/4bKX6Y0 #podcast #leadership #impactfinance #impostersyndrome #genderlensinvesting

A tale of two elections | This week's editor's post by Laura Joffre Last week, two major European countries went to the polls – and the results couldn’t be more different. The UK saw a landslide win for the Labour party – a much expected result, which gives Keir Starmer’s government a huge majority in parliament for the next five years. Outcome: pretty stable. In France, the results came as a surprise – the far-right, expected to be the biggest group in parliament, was relegated to third place behind a new coalition of left-wing parties, and President Macron’s centrist alliance. None of the three groups are anywhere close to having a majority in Parliament – and seem reluctant to speak to each other. Macron said coalition talks would “take some time” – how long is anyone’s guess; if talks between parties fail there could be a real parliamentary gridlock. Outcome: a mess. As we’ve seen before, the impact community needs to work with policymakers to help build the right ecosystem for social enterprises and mission-driven finance to thrive. The organisations that represent them need to speak the right language to appear relevant to the priorities of the government of the day; for the simple reason that creating impact takes much longer than an electoral cycle. In the UK, the social impact sector is currently experiencing a huge change of direction in policymaking. But it was expected for several months, and we know that this direction is likely to remain steady for some time; so the main actors stand ready – and they’ve told me what to expect for this week’s top story (link in comments). In France, the question is becoming almost philosophical: how can you work with a non-existent government in political chaos? The country has a long history of supporting the social economy through public policy, over successive governments; if parliament is gridlocked it won’t be able to push this agenda further. The French impact community is still taking stock of what’s just happened, and as the dust settles it will find a path forward and continue to make the case for the social economy to policymakers. In the meantime, social enterprises and impact investors will continue their work, helping to tackle the deep social issues at the root of the country’s divisions. Read the full editorial: https://lnkd.in/eeWrm8ir Mouvement Impact France | FAIR - Label Finansol | Social Enterprise UK | Better Society Capital | Tess Godley | B Lab UK

NEWS ANALYSIS: What the UK impact economy can expect from Labour’s new government During the recent UK general election campaign, social economy leaders have stressed how, and why, any new government should partner with the impact sector to deliver on their pledges. Now that Labour is at the helm, what can we expect from them? Read the article: https://lnkd.in/e8HpMY2r Tess Godley | Better Society Capital | Seb Elsworth MBE | Access - The Foundation for Social Investment | Emily Darko | Social Enterprise UK | Andrew O'Brien | Demos | Chris Turner | B Lab UK | Better Business Act | Nick Hurd | Stephen Timms | Kate Raworth #socent #impact #socialenterprise #impactinvesting #impinv

Last chance to book! The NatWest #SE100 Social Business Awards take place on Tuesday, in London and streamed live, online. It’s this year’s celebration of the UK’s most impressive social businesses so make sure you’re a part of it – get your free ticket here: https://lnkd.in/e2rNM2Di NatWest Social & Community Capital (registered charity number: 1079626)

🌟 A Week-Long Celebration of UK’s Best Social Enterprises! We are thrilled to kick off a week-long celebration the SE100 2024 awards finalists! Each day, we'll spotlight the incredible social enterprises making a positive impact in their communities. Today, we're excited to introduce NatWest SE100 Awards in partnership with Pioneers Post and S&CC finalists for the Social Business Pioneer category: 📰 Big Issue Invest - A dynamic B-corp tackling poverty through media, investment, and service initiatives. Aiming to engage 11 million people annually by 2027. 🌱 Glyn Wylfa - Transforming community spaces in Chirk with a bustling café, office accommodations, and community services, all while reducing energy usage by 50%. 💼 Grace Enterprises - Creating dignified jobs and holistic support for individuals facing significant barriers to employment in Nottingham through their three social enterprises. 🌍 Social Ark - Empowering underrepresented East London youth to become social entrepreneurs, fostering sustainable change from within their communities. 🚀 Upturn Enterprise - Unlocking potential and improving lives through tailored business services, training, and capacity building for diverse and disadvantaged communities. Join us in congratulating these fantastic Social Business Pioneers: Big Issue Invest, Glyn Wylfa, Grace Enterprises, Social Ark and Upturn Enterprise. A heartfelt thank you to our judges Hugh Swainson and Edward Finch for their invaluable contributions. Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to meet these superstars at SE100 Awards. 🎟️Tickets are nearly sold out, so secure yours today! If you can't attend in person, you can still stream the event live via Zoom. 📅 Event Date: Tuesday, 16 July 🔗 Book Your Tickets: https://lnkd.in/e2rNM2Di S&CC provides vital funding to charities, social enterprises, and community businesses that face challenges accessing mainstream finance. S&CC offers various loan options to support growth, working capital, and community impact. Find out more about how we at S&CC supports social enterprises: https://lnkd.in/dbBSciTr Learn more about NatWest SE100 Awards : https://lnkd.in/e7VWpehW Let's come together to celebrate innovation, impact, and community! ✨ #SE100Awards #SocialEnterprises #Innovation #CommunityImpact #SocialBusiness #Entrepreneurship #PioneersPost #NatWest #SocialCommunityCapital #CelebrateChange #MakeADifference #SocialGood #InspiringJourneys

JUST REVEALED: the location for the Social Enterprise World Forum 2025. We spoke to the organisers ahead of this morning's announcement to find out more about what the world can learn from social enterprise in Taiwan. https://lnkd.in/d2dE5adM #SEWF #SEWF25 #SocialEnterprise #SocEnt SEWF - Social Enterprise World Forum C.I.C. | Oliver Chang | Impact Hub Taipei | Helen Marcilia Harvey

NEW: Can social entrepreneurs help pave the way to peace in Yemen? In Yemen, transformative enterprises can help communities overcome conflict and poverty. But with the state in disarray, crumbling infrastructure and international funders hesitant to step into such a volatile environment, are the challenges facing aspiring social entrepreneurs insurmountable? Saoussen Cheikh shares her experiences as a mentor and programme leader who has helped dozens of Yemeni innovators to build their skills and incubate their ventures. Read more 👇 https://buff.ly/3zwwOuZ MENA-can #impact #socent #yemen #conflict #poverty

“Funders are realising that they need to invest in voices, stories and communications as much as they need to invest in food banks and football pitches.” Caroline Diehl MBE, founder of ImpactMedia.global and socialfounder.org, argues that "people want to give money to the media and communications sector" and urges media professionals to leverage methods such as crowdfunding, instead of relying solely on “corporate sponsors”. Read more 👇 https://buff.ly/4bApICT Natalie Campbell MBE | Belu | Isabelle Gerretsen | BBC | Tim West | Sebastian Rocca | Micro Rainbow | Zino Onokaye-Akaka | Heard – organisation | Amruta Byatnal | Thomson Reuters Foundation | Impact Hub London | European Journalism Centre (EJC) #solutionsjournalism #storytelling #impact #socent #communications

"Accounting only reflects the purpose of people interested solely in their own financial concerns with no consideration of other consequences, for themselves, or their families. Hardly empathetic." With new developments like AI exacerbating existing prejudices, Jeremy Nicholls explains why global accounting standards need an urgent gender lens overhaul. Read more 👇 https://buff.ly/3Wb93Bv Accounting for Sustainability (A4S) | Capitals Coalition | ISO - International Organization for Standardization | International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) #accounting #UN #SDGs #genderequality #government