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New consultancy support for social entrepreneurship in further and higher education
New consultancy support for social entrepreneurship in further and higher education
Written by
UnLtd employee
UnLtd position
New consultancy support for social entrepreneurship in further and higher education
Written by
UnLtd employee
UnLtd position
Over the past 7 years, UnLtd has worked with 89 universities in England and 30 FE colleges to build a vibrant culture of social entrepreneurship in further and higher education. This work has also extended to supporting universities in India, Thailand and the USA. Last week we launched the next phase of this consultancy service which seeks to reach more academic institutions and support the work already going on to have greater impact. The programme is backed by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) who have invested £5million in the programme, while universities across England have so far invested £8million into directly supporting social entrepreneurs. This investment has created university programmes in which staff, students and graduates can take risks, be enterprising and build skills to take beyond the reach of the university. SEE Change support has helped students and staff to develop business acumen and build networks in the region and beyond, helping to mainstream social entrepreneurship in education and supporting social entrepreneurs to thrive. Â
Since 2015 SEE Change has operated on a consultancy model, with the aims of:
Our prospectus for SEE Change 2016/17 outlines our model for consultancy support, which has been informed and shaped by supporters of social entrepreneurship in the Higher Education sector. This year’s support packages include a ‘core’ network offer to strengthen peer learning and establish connections and build opportunities for collaborative working in order to sustain the legacy of the UnLtd and HEFCE programmes, as well as innovate new work. There are three support pathways to fit the variety of needs of our partners: Â
We work with you in a bespoke way to develop, strengthen and embed support for social entrepreneurs. This can include strengthening internal and external partnerships, co-designing support programmes and broadening regional, thematic or global reach. Â
We help you bring in-curricular delivery to life using our ‘Learning by Doing’ approach on the themes of social innovation, leadership and entrepreneurship. We have a range of options from 2-day intensive programmes, to 30-hour modules to support staff teams to innovate in the curriculum and bring learning to life. This pathway can strengthen both in-curricular and extra-curricular support. Â
We help you to support your social entrepreneurs to grow their ventures, including staff development to support ventures to start well and thrive, direct enterprise support, route-to-market showcasing and social value measurement activities. We also create reach into the wider growth and investment readiness sectors for institutions and ventures who are creating progression routes for their programmes.
For more information or an exploratory conversation please contact SEE Change Programme Lead Nickala Torkington at [email protected]. If you know you are keen to join the network - and for us to help you diagnose your support needs, gain support from UnLtd and our wider strategic partners to develop or strengthen your networks, practice and support for social entrepreneurs  - then please request and Expression of Interest form from Nickala to apply. This ‘call out’ is open from June 2016. Initial deadline for expression of interest forms: Monday 15th July at 1pm. All prospective partners are expected to be signed up to the programme by September 2016. Planning meetings to diagnose support needs will take place July – October.