The Big Lottery Fund is looking for Ambitious Social Entrepreneurs to Fund

If you are looking for money to start or scale your company, then you probably have heard about the BIG Venture Challenge. If not, then you better read on.The Next Women spoke with Jo HIll who has around a million pounds to spend....

What is The BIG Venture Challenge?

�The Big Venture Challenge is a national competition run by UnLtd to find the most ambitious social entrepreneurs in England. We are looking for people with big ideas who can build successful ventures to deliver social impact. Winners of the Big Venture Challenge will get an initial �25K grant plus the opportunity to pitch for up to �150K of further match grant. In addition the winners will get access to first class business support, networks and mentoring designed to keep pace with the fastest growing social ventures.

Where does the � come from?

The money comes from the Big Lottery Fund. The want to find people who can provide entrepreneurial solutions to tackle increasing social problems across England.�

Why are you involved?

I am the Head of Ventures at UnLtd and my role is to find the most ambitious social entrepreneurs in the country, back them with seed finance and support them to scale up.

Why should startups participate?

This is a great opportunity for start-ups as well as more established ventures that are ready to scale and want investment to grow. It can be tough to find seed investment but our match grants may encourage other investors to back your venture. If an investor is willing to put in �50K and they know that this could leverage an additional �50K from us ? this could be an attractive proposition to an investor. You will also get great profile as one of the Big Venture Challenge winners.

Which startups are you looking for?

We are looking for entrepreneurs who are tackling the big social issues for example the rise in depression, obesity, products and services for people with disabilities, ventures that tackle crime, addiction, long term unemployment etc. We are looking for exciting, entrepreneurial ideas to improve people?s lives in sectors such as health, education, unemployment, housing etc. Could you be the next ?Big Issue??

How do people apply?

If you would like to apply, the deadline is June 30^th at 5pm. Your application form doesn?t have to be perfect, just tell us why your venture is exciting and can scale up to provide widespread impact. If you have any questions, pick up the phone and give us a call on 02075661100. You can find out more information and how to apply on www.bigventurechallenge.com

Source: http://www.thenextwomen.com/2011/06/28/big-lottery-fund-looking-ambitious-social-entrepreneurs-fund

Rozonda Thomas Natalie Portman Virginie Ledoyen Sofía Vergara Monika Kramlik