Beat Bullying
A young charity set up in 2000 to address the epidemic levels of bullying in the UK (each week at least 450,000 young people are bullied at school). Through shaping attitudes and changing behaviours, Beatbullying is socialising young people and communities to create a society where bullying is unacceptable. Through a diverse range of activities, including work with schools, communities, and with a uniquely kid-led approach, it has worked with approximately 700, 000 plus young people directly or indirectly in London and other parts of the UK. Beatbullying, on average, reduces incidents of bullying by 39% in schools where its prevention model is active. Set up by Emma-Jane Cross, Beatbullying's income has grown an average of 60% year-on-year over the last three years. VPF aims to work with Beat Bullying initially on developing its finance capabilities/expertise.
Changing Faces
Changing Faces is a UK charitable organisation which is recognised as a leader in the disfigurement field worldwide. Set up and directed by social entrepreneur and passionate visionary, James Partridge who sustained severe burns in a car fire when he was 18, it is the only organisation of its kind in having a pan-disfigurement remit and working with professionals and organisations in health, education and the wider society. It focuses on the psychological and social (psycho-social) aspects of disfiguring conditions, innovating and providing empowering help to individuals and families, encouraging and resourcing health and education professionals, and campaigning for 'face equality' and freedom from prejudice and discrimination. Disfigurement can affect anyone at any age, from any ethnic group and from many causes whether present at birth or acquired through trauma, violence, disease, cancer, paralysis or skin conditions. Recent research indicates that about 540,000 people in the UK have a significant facial disfigurement, 1 in 111 people; over 1m people have disfigurements to their face and body. Although medical/surgical treatments are increasingly sophisticated, they can rarely remove a disfigurement completely. Presently a £1.2m charity, VPF aims to work with Changing Faces on its plans to scale up its activities as well as to potentially expand internationally.
Homeless International
Homeless International: was set up to address the needs of the approximately 1 billion inadequately housed people in the world today, many of which are living in slums which are largely in and surrounding many fast-growing cities in the emerging markets. The efforts of local governments and international agencies are not sufficiently addressing this massive problem. Homeless International has developed a uniquely leveraged model, providing funding, research and advocacy to grassroots communities to develop their own housing and infrastructure projects. The direct benefits of the projects supported include decent, new and safe homes and/or land for 5,330 families in India, more than 900 families in Kenya and more than 130 families in Philippines and decent, new and safe communal sanitation facilities for more than 75,000 families in India and more than 1,000 market traders in Kenya (benefitting around 400,000 slum dwellers). VPF will work with Larry English, CEO of Homeless International on developing a new strategic plan.
Teach First
Set up in 2002, Teach First's mission is to address educational disadvantage by transforming exceptional graduates into effective, inspirational teachers and leaders in all fields. Teach First targets high calibre students who would not normally consider a career in teaching and places them in challenged secondary schools, where more than a third of pupils are eligible for free school meals, for the course of the two year placement. On meeting the requirements of the two year placement, participants graduate with Ambassador Status and become part of a growing movement of Teach First alumni in education and out working together to effect systemic change in education with the support of the Teach First Ambassador team. During 2007, Teach First placed a total of 495 (first-year intake 263; second-year intake: 232) teachers across Greater Manchester, London and the Midlands. Its Ambassador network currently comprises almost 500 members. Brett Wigdortz, Founder and CEO of Teach First, was voted E&Y Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2007. VPF is hoping to work with Teach First on the development of a new scheme.
Twin Trading
Twin is one of the most innovative (and to date unheralded) social enterprise charities in the UK (with £1.009m of revenue in 2006/7) having incubated many of the UK's Fair Trade brands including Cafédirect, The Divine Chocolate Company, AgroFair UK and most recently Liberation. Twin has strong relationships with many developing world producers and invests heavily in strengthening producer organisations, supply chain management, information and knowledge generation to influence policy debates and to increase market awareness amongst producers. Twin's brands, established with very limited investment, are independent and profitable mainstream businesses: for example Cafédirect's turnover in 2007 was circa £20.0 million and is the sixth largest coffee company in the UK. With it successful investments, Twin can lay claim to be pioneering a new form of social enterprise incubation. VPF is structuring a mixed loan/grant agreement with Twin and is planning to work with it on the next phase of its development.