The Venture Partnership Foundation

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 has worked with Larry English, CEO of Homeless International, on moving towards a more social enterprise model and on its growth strategy. To find out more about the value added by VPF, click here

Training for Life is a charity with a mission to help those furthest from the job market improve their lives and achieve economic self-sufficiency. The Charity is built on the conviction that sustained employment, supported by settled accommodation and tailored persona support and development is the only way to secure a move away from dependency on state benefits. Training for Life delivers its training, apprenticeships and social enterprise programmes in environments known as Prospect Centres. Prospect Centres are buildings (often local authority or church owned that are acquired, refurbished and retained as community assets. Prospect Centres are financially viable and seek to generate profit through social enterprise activity like its two training restaurants, the Hoxton and Dartmouth Apprentice. Since 1995, it has worked with 13,000 long-term unemployed people, supporting them into full-time education or employment. In 2008 70% of its apprentices went, on average, to go on to secure employment. VPF has provided a range of strategic and management advice to senior staff, including the development of a social enterprise toolkit which it is hoped will create a platform for the roll out of its prospect centres. To find out more about the value added by VPF, click here.