Spring Impact has selected five mission-driven UK charities to join its new Scale Accelerator, which is focused on scaling the impact of projects that take a systematic, person-led approach to support those on the extreme edges of society.
Drawn from across the UK, the 2020 Scale Accelerator cohort share a commitment to helping marginalised individuals facing multiple complex needs. The selected charities include:
- Commonweal Housing – works in partnerships to investigate, develop, test and share housing solutions to social injustice
- Expert Link – provides training and research for services supporting people experiencing multiple disadvantages
- KeyRing – inspiring people to build independent lives through networks of support
- My Sisters Place – provides trauma-informed services that support women 16 years and over who have experienced or are experiencing domestic abuse
- Streetwise Opera – engages those affected by homelessness in award-winning performing arts
Backed by The National Lottery Community Fund since 2015, Spring Impact’s Scale Accelerator is a unique programme which helps UK charities and social enterprises to scale their impact and change more lives, by providing vital support, skills and perspective. Participants benefit from an intensive programme of collaboration and support, using Spring Impact’s five-stage replication process to develop a strong scale strategy.
As part of its mission to foster a more enabling environment for scale in the UK, Spring Impact is trialling this new tailored and targeted Scale Accelerator, to develop and share learnings with others in the sector around this field of social innovation.
Joe Kallarackal, Director at Spring Impact said: “With marginalised people rarely facing just one issue, there is a growing need for a more systematic, person-led approach. We know that effective approaches, practices and projects that help adults facing multiple disadvantage have great potential but face unique challenges in scaling their impact. We want to focus on how these challenges can be overcome to unlock greater impact for the sector.”
The launch of this pilot follows the decision to expand the Scale Accelerator across three and a half years, thanks to £1.5 million in further funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK.
John Knights, Senior Head of UK Funding at The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “We are delighted that National Lottery funding is continuing to support the Scale Accelerator, as it develops new ways to help organisations to grow and increase their impact. Thanks to the money raised by National Lottery players, ambitious projects across the UK will be able to scale up their effects, enabling more people and communities to thrive.”
Since 2015, twenty-four ambitious UK charities and social entrepreneurs at the frontline of addressing key societal issues have participated in the Scale Accelerator. As a result, many have increased their reach and impact, and gained funding for their next phase of growth.