Big Society Capital | Ethical Marketing News

Investment into UK social impact exceeds £9 billion despite economic gloom

October 23, 2023October 14, 2023 Stuart Mitchell

Investment into tackling social issues in the UK continued to grow last year, against a backdrop of rising interest rates, the cost-of-living crisis and turmoil in wider financial markets where both private and alternative investments have seen falls. Big Society Capital, the UK’s leading social impact investor, has published its annual survey showing the amount invested into tackling social issues increased to £9.4 billion in 2022, up from £7.9bn in 2021. Big Society Capital attributes increasing investor appetite for social investment to three key drivers: social investment offers a diverse…

Survey finds most people recognise public spending alone cannot solve social issues in the UK

January 7, 2023December 30, 2022 Stuart Mitchell

Following last years Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement, 65% of UK adults say government spending alone is not enough to solve social issues in their local area, according to new research from Big Society Capital. 58% of the 2,000 surveyed also say that social issues including homelessness and community transport are better delivered by businesses and charities based in their local community rather than larger national organisations. This is most prominent amongst 18–34-year-olds, with 65% agreeing. The finding comes at a time when public spending is under increased pressure and…

Big Society Capital appoints new non-executive board member

December 9, 2022November 3, 2022 Stuart Mitchell

The Board of Big Society Capital is delighted to announce the appointment of Stan Chan. Subject to regulatory approval, Stan will join Big Society Capital having held roles as a trustee in several social organisations after a career in finance. Stan has spent most of the last decade consulting for both commercial and not-for-profit clients on financial strategy, raising of capital, cash flow planning and risk management. Stan trained as a chartered accountant while working in management consultancy at Coopers & Lybrand. He then held various positions in the Lattice…

Investment in social impact increases nearly ten-fold in ten years as social issues exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis

October 23, 2022September 27, 2022 Stuart Mitchell

Big Society Capital has revealed that the amount of social impact investment in the UK has grown nearly ten-fold over ten years, from £830 million in 2011 to £7.9 billion in 2021. Data from the social impact investor’s annual Market Sizing exercise – which estimates the value of investments made by UK social impact investment funds since 2011 – shows that the market has seen a steady growth trajectory year-on-year. This continued even after the onset of COVID-19, with a 22% increase between 2020-2021. The news comes at a time…

More than half of UK pension funds investing in people and planet

March 31, 2022March 10, 2022 Stuart Mitchell

A survey of UK pension funds, representing total assets under management of c£150bn, reveals that just over 50% hold some form of impact investment (an investment that is focused on positive social or environmental outcomes, as well as a financial return). The research, conducted by Pensions for Purpose sponsored by Big Society Capital, shows that UK pension funds are increasingly taking impact investing into consideration, with 90% of respondents looking to make impact investments in the UK. Of the schemes already making impact investments, these account for almost 5% of…