Here at Good Finance, we’re proud to play our part in helping organisations to navigate the social investment process through tools, information, resources and connections – one acronym at a time!   

Taking time out from your busy schedule to attend an event can be challenging – but worth it!
Gaining insights from a diverse range of experts, meeting peers and building relationships is invaluable to supporting your organisation.
Good Finance Live is a one-day, hybrid event brought to you by Good Finance in partnership with Access: The Foundation for Social Investment, Better Society Capital and Pathway Fund . The theme of the event is ‘Building Knowledge and Partnerships for Social Investment’ through interactive panels, Q&As and networking opportunities.
Social enterprise and charity leaders who are actively exploring social investment for their organisation are invited to attend in person and the event is open to all online.
Digital Marketing Apprentice Lordia Owusua-Frimpong shares just 5 of the top reasons to attend Good Finance Live!
 

Why should you consider social investment? What are the advantages? And what is ‘traditional’ investment? In this blog, I’ll be exploring all these questions and more, sharing insights from my first four months of navigating the world of social investment, a challenging but rewarding journey. 

On International Volunteers Day (5 December), we celebrate the army of people who freely give their time and skills to support community businesses across the UK. Andrew Dubock, Plunkett UK’s Communications Manager, shines a light on the important part that volunteers play in raising the funds to get a community ownership project off the ground.

We are excited to announce the launch of our 'Pay-It-Forward' model for our e-learning programmes. This is designed to tap into the power of community and shared responsibility by enabling investors and commercial organisations to contribute to a fairer, more inclusive learning ecosystem.

The social care system in the UK is broken. Privatisation and rampant profiteering by select for-profit businesses that seek to monetise some of our most vulnerable has had severe consequences for the rest of the market.  

Social investment plays a vital role in enabling impactful organisations to meet the needs of the communities they serve, no matter who they are. With access to financial support, these ventures go on to build and scale their social and environmental missions, improving lives and promoting sustainability along the way.

Understanding and measuring social impact is crucial for community businesses to demonstrate their value and secure support. Plunkett UK’s Nick Comley provides essential principles and practical steps to help you effectively communicate the positive changes your business brings to the community.

Investment committees are critical decision-making bodies that determine the allocation of funds, shape investment strategies, and guide organisations towards their financial goals.   However, social investment specifically considers more than just the financial outcome of an investment; What impact is the money making? What people and communities are seeing a positive difference, and is this sustainable?  Therefore, investment committees need more than financial expertise – they require people who really understand some of the biggest challenges facing communities across the UK and how different organisations are tackling these head on. 

In this brilliant guest post from Sebastian Rocca, Founder and CEO of Micro Rainbow, he explores three things to know about social investment while reflecting on his own experiences of the process... 

In recent weeks, communities across the UK have been terrorised by far-right violence, racism and Islamophobia. In response we’ve seen people coming together in their thousands to counter the threat of violence, to stand together and oppose this. However while we see the media coverage of these events subsiding, many people and communities continue to experience a distinct fear.

We’re looking for two dynamic individuals to join the Good Finance Steering Group!

Introducing the next of our 'Meet the Investor' mini-series! This week, we're spotlighting Harmony Chan, Social Investment Portfolio Manager at Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF), as she explores the challenges and opportunities for the organisation in 2024, alongside memorable investments, top tips, changes needed for the sector and more! 
 

Taking on investment can be overwhelming, so it’s essential to find the right investor for you. But what makes a social investor different?  There are a wide range of investors who can provide capital so why consider alternatives? Do you want an investor who shares your values, who cares about the communities you work with or who is aligned with your social or environmental  goals? Then it’s crucial to understand the ‘social’ bit and the impact it could support for your organisation. This blog delves into the world of social impact investment and we we’ve featured case studies from organisations just like yours to guide and inspire your journey.

Introducing the next of our 'Meet the Investor' mini-series! This week, we hear from Jeremy Pannell, Senior Corporate Finance Manager in the advisory and investment crowdfunding team at Triodos, as he explores the importance of people, the value of research and the diversity of his Spotify algorithm! 
 

Introducing the second of our 'Meet the Investor' mini-series! This week, we share some incredible investor insight from Morag Davies, Head of Commercial Banking at Reliance Bank, including why there's no such thing as a 'typical' day, the importance of a plan and her plans for more (!!) overseas marathons in 2025!

Introducing the first of our 'Meet the Investor' mini-series! This week, we share some fantastic investor insight from Mike Rivett-Strong, Business Support Manager at Livv Investment, including challenges, opportunities, top tips and his previous aspirations to be a professional footballer...

Sebastian Rocca is Founder and CEO of Micro Rainbow. They have a vision to create a world where lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and intersex (LGBTQI) people are safe, free from discrimination, persecution and have equal opportunities in life, including in accessing employment, training, financial services and housing. In this guest blog, he explores the various challenges and opportunities that social investment posed for Micro Rainbow over the last few years... 

Creating impact and real life differences in society is not an easy! The UK Social Enterprise Awards gives your organisation the opportunity to celebrate your achievements in furthering social impact.

Thinking about the future financing options of your social enterprise can be daunting, but it's important to understand all of the options available to make the decision that's right for you and your organisation. Our friends at School for Social Entrepreneurs explore five things you should know before you start to look into social investment and whether that's a viable option for you... 

Discover environmental projects and their impact through social finance, exciting case studies, and more!

Annie Constable, Digital Project Manager at Good Finance, provides a detailed guide to all things social investment, including what it is, how it works, how much it costs and more, as well as key tools and resources to help charities and social enterprises to navigate the space.   

Andrew Dubock, Communications Manager at Plunkett UK, explores how using social investment could support a new generation of community businesses to invest in energy saving measures, to make the businesses ‘greener’ and also reduce running costs.

Jeremy Ince, Regional Manager at Charity Bank has recently achieved the personal milestone of helping charities and social enterprises access over £100m in social investment during his 15-year career with Charity Bank.