The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Entrepreneurship and The Entrepreneurs Network invite you to a discussion on how the UK can better support entrepreneurs from financially-excluded communities, and those building community-led organisations to tackle local challenges.

Despite growing recognition of the importance of inclusive entrepreneurship and community leadership, many founders continue to struggle to access the capital, networks and support they need. At the same time, those creating grassroots solutions to local problems often operate with limited resources, navigating both entrepreneurial and social sector challenges.

The event will explore the experiences of entrepreneurs who face barriers to accessing mainstream finance, as well as those who establish and grow local charities and social ventures in response to the issues facing their communities. It will touch on the role of alternative and community-based finance, alongside the practical realities of starting and sustaining impact-driven organisations.

The conversation will be led by The Rt Hon Lord Kamall, Member of the APPG, and will cover:

• Barriers to finance for entrepreneurs from financially-excluded communities.

• The role of microfinance and alternative lending in supporting early-stage founders.

• The challenges of establishing and sustaining community-led charities and social ventures.

• How policy can better recognise and support locally-driven solutions to social and economic issues.

• Opportunities to strengthen pathways into entrepreneurship for underrepresented groups.

There will also be contributions from Karen Davies, founder of Purple Shoots, a UK microfinance organisation that tackles poverty by inspiring and enabling enterprise.

An anonymised writeup will be produced off the back of the meeting and circulated within the APPG, with wider policymakers, and with our network of thousands.

This is an opportunity for a small group of founders, community leaders, funders and policymakers to engage directly with these issues and discuss practical steps to build a more inclusive and locally responsive entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Please note:

• All of our events are free to attend.

• Patrons, Advisers and Supporters will be given priority, although we aim to always ensure the most relevant people are in the room.

• If you want to be invited to future events, tell us more about what you’re interested in here.

• Please get in touch if you have any questions regarding accessibility.