Blog

Inspiring Scotland takes essential charities and helps them become exceptional ones using a “venture philanthropy” model. Just as venture capitalists provide funding to develop start-up companies, so venture philanthropists provide the cash to help charities scale up and sustain their activities.

Its flagship 14:19 Fund is about to celebrate a decade in operation and is on course to hit its ambitious target of helping 35,000 young Scots into employment, education and training. More than £50 million has been invested by the fund, seeded with finance from the Scottish Government, private trusts, foundations and philanthropists. It has attracted a further £75.6m of match funding.

Yet the money is only half of the picture. What sets the 14:19 Fund and the wider Inspiring Scotland model apart is how they provide the expertise and advice to help charities manage their cash and other aspects of their operations. Venture capitalists know when they need to jump in and help the companies in which they invest. Venture philanthropists are no different.

Venture philanthropy is a highly-engaged form of funding and our performance advisors, often from senior financial and professional services positions, work with staff at our charities to strengthen their day-to-day management. This comprises implementing strategic business plans, developing risk management strategies and strengthening financial management, including through cost-benefit analyses. We also have a network of more than 300 professional volunteers, ranging from lawyers and accountants to photographers and marketing specialists, who provide expert advice to our charities on a pro-bono basis.

Many go on to join the boards of the charities, strengthening their commitment to tackling poverty and improving life chances in Scotland.

One of the most inspiring examples of our pro-bono success is the Callander Youth Project Trust (CYPT), a charity that helps young people into work and education. When CYPT managing director Chris Martin told his board that he wanted to develop a building in the town to launch a pair of social enterprises – the Bridgend cafe and the Callander Youth Hostel – they thought he was mad. With advice from Inspiring Scotland’s volunteers, CYPT has breathed new life into the local area, with the youth hostel picking up a five-star rating from VisitScotland and the cafe thriving.

As the 14:19 Fund concludes 10 years of success, our attention turns to Inspiring Scotland’s next venture. Helping 35,000 young people into education, employment and training is a massive achievement but youth unemployment is still a spectre that holds back many communities from realising their full potential.

It’s not enough for us to put our hands in our pockets to support charities and then walk away. We need to roll up our sleeves and help them better manage their finances and operations so that they can better sustain support for more young people across our most disadvantaged communities.