Elizabeth White joins the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme

Elizabeth White

Local entrepreneur Elizabeth White has joined the 2016/2017 cohort of the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs programme, in partnership with School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) this Autumn.

The year-long programme supports entrepreneurs developing their own social businesses through the provision of financial support and comprehensive learning support including a business mentoring scheme. The entrepreneurs each receive Start-Up grants of £4,000 or Scale-Up grants of £15,000 from the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme, and this – together with the action learning programme delivered in partnership with School for Social Entrepreneurs, and support from their Lloyds Banking Group mentor – has enabled them to take their social enterprises to the next level and plan for the future.

Elizabeth, who previously owned Littleborough Gallery and Fresh From The Studio, has joined the fifth year of the Start Up Liverpool programme with Creative Connections, a social enterprise dedicated to relieving isolation and improving wellbeing in later life. The enterprise will provide creative activities in homes and sheltered housing, tea parties for those who live alone and wellbeing boxes for the housebound.

The organisation will be based in Littleborough but will cover the whole of Rochdale MBC.

Over 1,000 social entrepreneurs have been supported by the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme since its launch in 2012 and this year sees over 300 entrepreneurs join the programme, with diverse projects tackling issues such as the environment, education, gender and mental health.

Paula Rogers, Head of the Social Entrepreneurs Programme at Lloyds Banking Group said: “We are proud to welcome this year’s cohort of social entrepreneurs to the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs programme, in partnership with School for Social Entrepreneurs. I look forward to witnessing their businesses develop throughout the year and seeing the positive impact these social entrepreneurs will contribute to their communities, a key part of our commitment to helping Britain prosper”.

Alastair Wilson, CEO of School for Social Entrepreneurs said; “It is fantastic to welcome another cohort of motivated entrepreneurs to the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme, in partnership with School for Social Entrepreneurs, and I look forward to seeing how our new students shape their ideas and develop their social businesses with the valuable support of the programme throughout the year”.

Launched in 2012, the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme, in partnership with SSE, is designed to support social entrepreneurs in communities and, through them, help stimulate economic growth and regeneration across the UK. Recent research by CAN Invest and Investing for Good demonstrates the positive impact of the programme on people, businesses and communities: by 2017 the programme will have created over 7,000 jobs and supported 1.1 million beneficiaries. The programme is also supported by The Big Lottery Fund