Unlocking Growth Through Social Investment in the West Midlands

4th February 2026

By Tom Bostock, West Midlands Investment Manager at Big Issue Invest.

If you’ve spent any time in the West Midlands social economy, you’ll know two things:

The people here are brilliant at solving local problems, and they’re doing it on a budget! I know a thing or two about cost saving, being a Yorkshireman.

That’s where social investment comes in, a powerful lever to help brilliant organisations scale their work and strengthen the sector.

I’ve been operating in the region for the last 3 years and here are my reflections on why it matters, how it works, and how to get involved.

Why social investment is paramount to the growth of the social economy in the West Midlands.

The West Midlands isn’t just any region — it’s one with a £14 billion social economy made up of 9,000+ organisations employing 100,000 + people. That’s not a niche sector; that’s an economic force.

WMCA has basically said, “Alright then, let’s double it.” Their goal is to grow the social economy from £3.5bn to £7bn within 10 years, backed by clusters, business support, and place-based growth plans. I’m very excited to be leading on the project with BII and the WMCA in driving this partnership, to equip more impactful organisations with the tools to grow and help them reach more people in need.

Organisations need capital to invest in staff, equipment, digital tools, buildings, contracts, and new services.

Social investment fills that gap, especially when:

• Traditional finance doesn’t understand your mission.
• You’re too early‑stage for banks.
• You want the freedom to grow trading income without depending solely on grants.

How social investment unlocks growth.

Social investment gives you the runway to build, improve and expand.

• Move from surviving to planning ahead.
• Hire the people they need but couldn’t previously afford.
• Take on contracts that require upfront delivery capacity.
• Build or refurbish community assets.
• Invest in digital tools that reduce admin chaos (we’ve all been there).

At Big Issue Invest, we see this constantly. Our investments are designed to help organisations grow their impact while becoming financially resilient, and the results speak for themselves. In the last year alone, BII deployed £9.4 million to 50 social purpose organisations, supporting almost 1.9 million people across the UK.

Investment doesn’t just boost impact, it boosts confidence. Organisations stop firefighting and start growing income revenue.

One of the clearest illustrations of this region’s momentum is the WMCA’s support for place‑based social economy clusters. These organisations receive investment to bring together social enterprises and local partners to build stronger local ecosystems.

At Big Issue Invest, we’re working closely with WMCA to deploy more social investment into organisations just like these, ones tackling poverty, employment barriers, housing needs, and community resilience.

Practical advice for organisations seeking social investment

Here’s the honest, friendly checklist I discuss with clients, and remember social investors are understanding that you’re spinning plates. For many social enterprises, you must be the CEO, CFO and the boots on the ground. We appreciate that you’re busy and can be flexible.

• Know your numbers well enough not to panic when someone asks about them. Have clear sense of your income streams, costs, and cashflow.
• Be clear on what you need the money for. Investment is fuel. You need to know which engine it’s powering.
• Get your story straight: impact + business model. Social investors care deeply about mission, but we also need to see the plan behind the passion.
• Start early. Reach out and explore what support is out there. Please see social investment as a tool that you can call upon as and when the time is right. Investment conversations take time and it’s imperative that both parties start to build trust, rapport and understanding from the outset.
• Use BSSEC and other WMCA clusters, and local support networks. There is a ton of free support in this region, from investment readiness workshops to peer networks. Collaboration is key and there’s loads of support available.
• And finally: ask questions. My job isn’t to judge, it’s to help you navigate whether social investment fits. We’re not a scary bank hiding behind a screen, were stood next to with an understanding ear and coffee (hint, hint for my future visit)

Call to action from me.

If you’re a social enterprise, charity, or purpose‑driven business, reach out and put the kettle on! I appreciate that confidence, capacity and cost can be barriers to looking at investment, but we can also support organisations to get investment ready.

Our support has low interest rates and blended (part grant and loan) so is very attractive.

We don’t need you to fit square pegs in round holes. The main equation I need to understand is. Tom, I need X, because it will allow me to do Y. If Y helps the growth and financial resilience, in turn that allows you to create even more impact. Social investment doesn’t have to be complicated, it just needs to work for you!