Chloe Watmore: managing change, exponential growth, knowledge sharing and succession in engineering

YWCA Yorkshire supports over 250 young women, children and families to build better futures. They may be homeless, escaping abuse, or in financial or other difficulties. It runs programmes to assist them in living happy, fulfilled and independent lives.

A charity, it has operated locally since the 1940s. This Valentine's Day it launched a campaign to "spread the love and word" about volunteering. So I invited Diane Offers, YWCA's HR Manager, on air.. She covers:

• YWCA Yorkshire's range of accommodation, support, empowerment and advocacy services
• The crucial and varied roles its diverse volunteers play and how the charity nurtures them
• How businesses already work with YWCA Yorkshire, and what you can do to help create real long-lasting change the life of someone in financial or relationship difficulties and having no family or friends to fall back on
• YWCA Yorkshire earns some of its operating income by providing services which are commissioned by local authorities, so we discuss social value in procurement, public services and commissioning
• Diane's day-to-day work in HR, her own career history, and her advice for others developing HR careers in purpose-driven organisations

Also in this episode after the interview with Diane: new funding opportunities of between £10,000 and £120,000 for businesses and social enterprises. Timings:

• 0:00 to 23:50 Interview with Diane Offers – get involved with YWCA Yorkshire as a volunteer via www.ywcayorkshire.org.uk/volunteer and/or learn more about becoming a corporate supporter at www.ywcayorkshire.org.uk/corporate-partnerships
• 23:50 Forthcoming events from Business Sheffield: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/business-sheffield-17338011423
• 25:01 Funding opportunities: 1) for UK industry via the Science and Technology Facilities Council / Innovate UK Industry Impact Fund (£10,000 - £100,000 to help companies overcome difficult product, manufacturing or process performance issues; focus includes health, net zero, energy, defence;  deadline 14 March 2024; details at https://www.ukri.org/opportunity/industry-impact-fund/ ) and for social enterprises / asset-locked organisations via the Esmée Fairbairn Youth-Led Creativity programme (up to £120,000 over 3 years; to support work led by and for young people who have less access to creative programmes or who are underrepresented in arts and culture; deadline 15 March 2024; details at https://esmeefairbairn.org.uk/latest-news/youth-led-creativity-funding )
• 27:19 Ends. 

This is episode #394 of the Business Live radio show, for curious entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs. Thanks for listening to the programme and to Sheffield Live! for broadcasting us on DAB and FM radio.

Welcome to episode 393 of Business Live, for purpose-driven entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs. When Rotherham wanted to transform its adult social care offer for people with learning disabilities and autistic people and offer personalised services that people wanted, local social and micro-enterprises proved crucial. Helen Allen and Harry Clarkson tell me how.

Community Catalysts (www.communitycatalysts.co.uk) is a thriving community interest company, running since 2010 and operating across the UK. Speakup (www.speakup.org.uk) is a Self Advocacy Group run by and for people with learning disabilities and autistic people. Employment is for Everyone ( (www.employmentisforeveryone.org.uk) is a social movement that aims to improve the employment rates for people with learning disabilities and autistic people.

Also on today's show:

• New CAF Venturesome funding for charities and social enterprises operating across the UK, including those with international projects. https://www.cafonline.org/about-us/caf-venturesome
• Funding for starting up up to £8,000) and  scaling up (up to £18,000) social enterprises from UnLtd, the foundation for social entrepreneurs: https://www.unltd.org.uk/awards/
• Event: 19 January, Refugee Entrepreneurship Network and Centre for Entrepreneurs Corporate Roundtable: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/refugee-entrepreneurship-network-corporate-roundtable-tickets-759765548207
• Sheffield City Council has commissioned the Sheffield Social Enterprise Network to create the Social Enterprise Growth Accelerator (SEGA), providing specialist business support and advice for social enterprises in Sheffield. More details: www.ssen.org.uk/sega and www.scci.org.uk
• Book recommendation: Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn

Social enterprises ploughed over a billion pounds into their social and environmental objectives last year. They make a vital contribution to the UK's economy, society and natural environment, as Dean Hochlaf describes today.

An estimated 131,000 social enterprises in the UK collectively turn over £78 billion, representing over 3% of GDP. Many operate in the most deprived areas of the UK. They employ around 2.3 million people and  made £1.2 billion in profit in the last financial year,  reinvesting over a billion pounds of that into their environmental and social missions.

The figures come from Social Enterprise UK's 'Mission Critical – State of Social Enterprise Survey 2023' and Dean also covers access to appropriate, patient, long-term funding; procurement and ensuring social enterprises' social value is well-recognised; and visibility among consumers and in private sector supply chains.

Also in this episode: new funding opportunities for businesses, social enterprises, charities, universities and arts organisations. Timings:

• 0-1:40 Introduction
• 1:40 Interview with Dean Hochlaf, Social Enterprise UK. Read SEUK's full report here: https://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/seuk-report/mission-critical-state-of-social-enterprise-survey-2023/
• 12:03 The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) are developing a joint VCSE action plan; they say it will identify and seek to address the barriers facing VCSE organisations in bidding and winning government contracts and grants. If you are from a voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisation and have comments on this please take part in their short survey.
• 14:25 Events in Sheffield including Christmas makers' markets; the Millennium Gallery's Handmade for Christmas shop.
• 15:33 The City of Rivers exhibition at Weston Park museum showcasing Sheffield's relationship with its rivers (there was a super article in the Sheffield Tribune this week too)
• 16:38 Grants and funding opportunities for businesses and social enterprises:
• For small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in South Yorkshire: The UK Shared Prosperity Fund Business Productivity and Digitisation Grant Scheme – Digital Innovation Grants of between between £2,500 and £5,000 and Productivity Grants of between £2,500 and £12,499 . Applications will be approved on a first come, first served basis until no more grants or support are available. Details: https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/business/business-productivity-and-digitisation-grant-scheme
• The Sheffield Creative Communities Fund is offering Sheffield-based arts, cultural and heritage organisations to deliver creative programmes of outreach, engagement and participation . Grants can be between a minimum of £10,000 and maximum £30,000. Deadline for applications Tuesday 9 January 2024, midday. Details: https://www.sitegallery.org/creativecommunities
• Electric vehicle infrastructure grant for staff and fleets. This one is for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and gives you money off the cost of wider building and installation work that’s needed to install multiple chargepoint sockets (eg wiring and posts). The grant covers 75% of the cost of the work, up to a maximum of £15,000. Open for applications now; details https://find-government-grants.service.gov.uk/grants/electric-vehicle-infrastructure-grant-for-staff-and-fleets-1#summary
• The Youth Music NextGen Fund, which offers grants of up to £2,500 for early-stage musicians and wider music adjacent creatives; aimed at those whose lack of finance holds them back from pursuing their goals. It's

When I heard about the UK's first open-access factory, offering "pay-as-you go accessibility" so entrepreneurs and makers can access state-of-the-art light industrial equipment I was intrigued.

Originally established in 2012, its co-founders call it the "missing link for solopreneurs and SMEs seeking to bridge the gap between start-up and producing at scale."

And when I learned it was a social enterprise, with sustainability "designed in" – well, we had to get its co-founders in for a  radio interview. They've gone from strength to strength, moving to a brilliant, award-winning facility, the UK’s largest open-access factory which they say is "crafted by makers for makers."

In this episode, Arnaud Nichols and Al Parra, BLOQS co-founders, cover:

• What they mean by a pay-as-you-go, open access factory
• Who uses it (there are currently 700 active members and they're really diverse) and what people create
• How collaboration and access to shared facilities means makers and small businesses can use equipment at a much lower cost, and with a lower individual and collective environmental footprint
• How BLOQS has both contributed to regeneration n the London Borough of Enfield, and benefited from regeneration match funding investment
• Why being a social enterprise enables purpose and mission alignment, with everyone sharing common goals
• Their own backgrounds and transferable skills
• Plans for the future with big ambition to build more BLOQS

It was a pleasure hearing from Al and Arnaud and I hope you'll find the interview as fascinating as I did. Do check out the BLOQS website here: https://bloqslondon.com

This is episode #391 of the Business Live radio show, for curious entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs. Thanks for listening to the programme and to Sheffield Live! for broadcasting us on DAB and FM radio.

Many businesses make the same basic mistake when they want to make video content, says today's guest Joseph Palmer of Open House Pictures.  His simple tip will help anyone wanting to use films to communicate, whether you want to work with a professional filmmaker, a local freelancer or even try to shoot them yourself.

It's been a few years since Joe was last on the programme and Open House has achieved significant growth since then, creating jobs and taking on multiple creative and commercial projects. Joe explains – and tells us about:

• the value of finding mentors
• a new networking event in Sheffield which supports LGBTQ+ businesses – Out2Meet: LGBTQIA+ Business Networking – on 29 November in the city centre ( https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/out2meet-lgbtqia-business-networking-sheffield-tickets-700504005337 )
• a couple of books which have made a lasting impact 
• Joe's tips for anyone running a business, social enterprise or other organisation who wants to use video effectively
• Find Open House Pictures here https://www.openhousepictures.co.uk and Joe on LinkedIn here https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephdpalmer/

Also in today's programme – a run through of several funding opportunities for businesses and social enterprises, including

• Grants of up to £45,000 to businesses, universities and research organisations through the Transport Research and Innovation Grant (TRIG) competition – which covers decarbonisation, connectivity and other "challenge areas." Details of this Department for Transport and Connected Places Catapult programme: https://cp.catapult.org.uk/opportunity/transport-research-and-innovation-grants-2023/ Closing date: 27 November.
• The Youth Music NextGen Fund, which offers young creatives grants of up to £2,500 to make their ideas happen. It's for early-stage musicians and wider music adjacent creatives; and aimed at those whose lack of finance holds them back from pursuing their goals.
  It's open to 18–25-year-olds (and up to 30-year-olds who identify as d/Deaf or Disabled). Details https://youthmusic.org.uk/nextgen/nextgen-fund Closing date: 19 January 2024.
• Community Interest Companies, charities and universities are invited to apply to the Armed Forces Families Fund: Supporting Partners programme to fund "projects that will improve support for Service partners and spouses regarding the skills and experiences they bring to the workplace." Grants of £30,000 to £80,000 available. Closing date: 25 January 2024.
• Grants of up to £2,000 are available to young people who need support with business start up costs that they would otherwise not be able to afford, through the SWEF Grants Programme. Applicants need to be between 18 - 30, living in South Yorkshire and from a low income household or facing other challenges that prevent developing the business. Details https://www.sycf.org.uk/apply/search-our-grants/swef

This is episode #390 of the show. Thanks for listening to the programme and to Sheffield Live! for broadcasting us on DAB and FM radio.

"I ended up being offered a permanent role as a junior programmer which is a dream come true – and I worked on an awesome game which is actually my favourite of all the current projects at Sumo."

Many people would love to work in the games industry but don't know where to start. Today's guests Eva Kioseoglou and Ruth Dickens have both secured full-time roles as junior programmers, having graduated from a games industry apprenticeship programme on which previous game programming experience is not required.

Ruth and Eva have some brilliant advice for aspiring programmers in today's episode.

They discuss their experiences in  the Sumo Digital Academy, a talent development programme that "creates new pathways into the games industry," offering opportunities to graduates aged 18 or above looking to make their first career move, those skilled in different industries, and those seeking a career change.

Eva and Ruth are the first two people to graduate from the Academy's Game Programming Apprenticeship Programme. It gave them C++ training, practical application through project work, Unreal Engine training and then placement experience.

They discuss why they applied to the programme. Applicants must demonstrate "their learning potential as game programmers" – Ruth and Eva explain how they did so.

We cover the programme content, the products and projects they worked on, the mist challenging and most valuable parts of the apprenticeship programme too – and Eva and Ruth both give their top tips for anyone thinking of applying this year.

Also on the show today: a new retail opening in Sheffield, some events and some funding opportunities.

Timings and further details:

• 0 - 1:41 Introduction
• 1:41 Interview with Eva Kioseoglou and Ruth Dickens. Applications for the 2024-25 Game Programmer Apprenticeship Programme will open on 4th September 2023 (and will close on the 29th September). Details will be available via https://www.sumo-academy.com/game-programmer-apprenticeship
• During the interview we mentioned the Sumo Digital Academy's Diversity Internship Training Programme, which gives people from under-represented groups the opportunity to receive training and mentoring in game programming to see what it would be like as a career. Details: https://www.sumo-academy.com/diversity-internship-training-programme
• 20:58 A new opening in Sheffield city centre: Atelier Japan, the brainchild of Johnny Pawlik (who's been on the show a few times) brings traditional and hand-made arts and crafts to Sheffield. It sounds wonderful.
• 22:42 Events including an International Youth Day celebration in Sheffield today (11 August); Sheffield By The Seaside until 29 August; Jurassic Week at Graves Park Animal Farm. See the Welcome to Sheffield website.
• 23:27 Sheffield City Council has re-opened its books for the Electric Van Trial. 15 vans are available to book – register your interest here: https://forms.sheffield.gov.uk/form/auto/apply_electric_van_trial
• 24:01 Grants of £10,000 to £75,000 are available to  community organisations tackling the cost of living crisis. Find out more at https://locality.org.uk/news/community-organisations-cost-of-living-fund

Thanks for listening to the programme and to Sheffield Live! for broadcasting us on DAB and FM radio.

Naomi Hulston has experienced "pretty much every role" in her 21 years working for Catch22.

The social business has been around for 200 years. It delivers more than 120 public services that meet local needs and support individuals within our communities. "We consider ourselves a business with the heart of a charity and a business' mindset." Those services include justice, education services, support for vulnerable children and families and many more.

Naomi started her career at Catch22 as a volunteer before progressing in many different roles across the organisation, so when Naomi became chief executive she  brought valuable insights and understanding as a leader..

And in this interview she gives candid, thoughtful and powerful tips about how to foster an "intentional" culture; accountability, transparency and communication.

Anyone running a social enterprise, purpose-led business or charity should listen to Naomi's advice.

She also covers changing ways of working, making the "impossible" possible and collaboration.

And we learn about the positive impact of a "people-centred" culture – with practical and implementable tips about how to galvanize this. "People feel included, engaged, enabled, able to express their wishes."

Plus there's even a remarkable story about the Rolling Stones.

What next?

•  Visit the Catch22 website: https://www.catch-22.org.uk
•  Rachel has written a chapter for the new book, Vitalising Purpose – The Power of the Social Enterprise Difference in Public Services,  published this week by E3M, which I have co-written.
•  A 'must-read for chief executives, heads of transformation, commissioners and procurement officers, and social entrepreneurs,' the book, which I have written is available in paperback and ebook formats here: https://e3m.org.uk/vitalising-purpose-book/
•  And from Amazon here ( https://amzn.eu/d/6f25KJB )

Today's guests have bumped off nearly 300 people through their business.

But they're not career criminals. Adrian Hobart and Rebecca Collins run Hobeck Books, a leading family-run independent publisher of award-winning crime, thriller, mystery and suspense books.

What better business to get on air in National Crime Reading Month?

Rebecca and Adrian launched Hobeck Books in the middle of the pandemic. Rebecca brought expertise from over two decades working in the publishing industry, with clients such as Bloomsbury, Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press. She is also a published non-fiction author and poet. Adrian has been a broadcaster and journalist with the BBC for twenty-five years, and is an audiobook narrator, filmmaker and a writer.

This episode is a super business case study in itself, giving an insight into how Rebecca and Adrian launched the business, choose which books to publish, what works best to promote their authors, and the ever evolving world of the publishing industry.

We talk plot, character, what makes for a riveting read – and I couldn't resist asking Adrian and Rebecca for their favourite ways in which their authors have knocked off characters.

It's chock-full of tips anyone can use in their businesses too, with practical advice about branding, building an email list, giving radio interviews, and writing your own business book. And Rebecca and Adrian discuss their own work as editor and audiobook narrator too.

Today's show also includes upcoming events for entrepreneurs and some new funding opportunities after the interview.

What next?

• Visit Hobeck Books: https://www.hobeck.net
• Adrian and Rebecca's Hobcast Book Show has been nominated as one of twenty of the best UK Mystery Podcasts. Listen here: https://www.hobeck.net/hobcast
• Rebecca worked with me and co-author Jonathan Bland on our new book, Vitalising Purpose – The Power of the Social Enterprise Difference in Public Services,  published this week by E3M. It's available in paperback and ebook formats here: https://e3m.org.uk/vitalising-purpose-book/ and from Amazon here ( https://amzn.eu/d/6f25KJB )
• Events mentioned on the show: Bagging Your First Investment, Wednesday, June 28, Electric Works, Sheffield: Details. And Fundraising for impact startups - Unrest, Friday, June 30, webinar. Details.
• Plus the Welcoming Cultures Celebration in Sheffield and Alternate Realities: Sheffield DocFest at Site.
• Funding; go to https://www.powertochange.org.uk/our-work/our-programmes/ and https://get-it-made.co.uk/grants/women-in-engineering for details of funding mentioned in the show.

PossAbilities CIC provides services for people with learning disabilities, people with dementia and young people leaving care.

Formed in 2014, PossAbilities has increased staff from 220 to more than 600, had eight consecutive years of growth and surplus, and grown its capital and reserves from zero to £6 million.

It was formerly the Adult Social Care Provider within Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council (MBC) and was one of the first 100 social enterprises to be formed by ‘spinning-out’ services which had formerly been run by public sector bodies.

It has become a regional rather than local provider – and much of this, says CEO Rachel Law, is through doing ‘the opposite of what we were used to doing as part of a local authority’.

Its organisational achievements are matched by its outcomes: PossAbilities CIC has used its own surpluses to build high-quality accommodation and to run numerous community initiatives and events, becoming a catalyst in the neighbourhoods it works.

Rachel gives us an honest description of how she and her team overcame barriers and challenges to ‘push the boundaries of what is possible’ as a social entrepreneur and former local authority officer leading a successful public service spin-out.

What next?

•  Visit the PossAbilities CIC website: https://www.possabilities.org.uk
•  Rachel has written a chapter for the new book, Vitalising Purpose – The Power of the Social Enterprise Difference in Public Services,  published this week by E3M, which I have co-written.
•  A 'must-read for chief executives, heads of transformation, commissioners and procurement officers, and social entrepreneurs,' the book, which I have written is available in paperback and ebook formats here: https://e3m.org.uk/vitalising-purpose-book/
•  And from Amazon here ( https://amzn.eu/d/6f25KJB )

Do we want to live in places full of thriving businesses and social enterprises, and where people don't get trapped by exploitative lenders and loan sharks? Sounds good to me.

Eleanor Russell is policy and programmes lead at Responsible Finance, which represents the UK's social purpose lenders (community development finance institutions, CDFIs). Their work has been covered extensively by media including the Guardian, Financial Times, BBC, Mail Online and elsewhere. 

I work with Responsible Finance and invited Eleanor on to discuss new figures about the social, economic and environmental impact unlocked by CDFIs, through increasing access to finance for people, businesses and social enterprises otherwise excluded from finance for a variety of reasons.

This £248m sector worked with nearly 95,000 customers in 2022 – a 22% leap on the year before – creating and supporting thousands of businesses and jobs, and helping households avoid millions in interest compared with higher-cost lenders. Eleanor gives us more details.

Also in this episode:

• Events:  Games Careers Week, from 19-25 June, which celebrates diverse pathways into a career in games for young people of all backgrounds; StartUp Meetup Sheffield on 30 May, and a "lunch with Claire Rimmer" event at Theatre Deli,  Arley Street, Sheffield, via the Social Enterprise Exchange programme. Claire is head of Operations at Sheffield-based creative arts organisation, CADS.
• Funding and support, including:
• Accelerating FemTech, an initiative aiming to support innovators to boost the development of technology solutions to address current challenges in women’s health. Learn more and apply here.
• The Power to Change Community Business Trade Up programme (open now, deadline 26 June, details here) and the Discovery Fund (which opens for applications on 1 June and closes on 21 July 2023, details here).
• UK SMEs can apply to Innovate UK's Future Economy investor partnerships, (deadline 5 July 2023,, guidance and details here).
• An interview originally broadcast in March with David Hanney, CEO of Alpkit, a business which has thrived after CDFI finance.

Timings:

• 0- 2:55 Introduction
• 2:55 New interview with Eleanor Russell
• 15:29 Interview with David Hanney, CEO, Alpkit (recorded in March 2023)
• 34:02 Events
• 37:03 Support and funding for SMEs and social and community businesses
• 40:42 Wrapping up