Impact Ventures (U.K.)

Social impact sits at the core of what K10 does. It is one of those companies that trigger an instant wow-effect considering its efforts in delivering truly positive change in communities throughout London (United Kingdom) – so far with excellent results. On the one hand, 25 percent of all young people in London are unemployed, often lacking the skills or the knowledge for a meaningful career. On the other, an ageing workforce means there is an acute skills-gap within the construction industry, and a parallel need for young, qualified entrants.

K10 effectively recognised this challenge. In response, it offers young, disadvantaged and unemployed people an apprenticeship that provides the experience necessary for sustainable full-time employment as well as a qualification they can use to further their careers. Alongside these technical skills, apprentices’ social and emotional outcomes are also enhanced, leading to greater ambition and a sense of optimism about the future. Furthermore, K10 seeks to make the construction industry more accessible to people who traditionally would not have worked there: 15 percent of K10 apprentices on site are women, 12 percent are ex-offenders and 10 percent have a disability. Ethnic minorities are also frequent among those who have managed to develop a rewarding career in construction with K10’s help.

The company employs apprentices directly as an accredited Apprenticeship Training Agency, securing paid jobs with construction companies and developers across London. Apprenticeships include business administration, carpentry, plumbing, dry-lining, painting and electrical installation. K10 also manages to create opportunities that would otherwise not have existed. Impact Ventures UK – a leading EIF-backed investment fund that specialises in providing growth capital to social enterprises – invested in K10 with a view to scaling the business so that it is both profitable and able to achieve the ambitious target of employing at least 100 apprentices each year which has been exceeded in each of the last three years.

Company: K10 Apprenticeships Limited (UK)

Type of business: social enterprise, apprenticeships in construction and other sectors

EU-supported investment through Impact Ventures UK

For further information about EIF intermediaries inthe UK, please refer to: http://www.eif.org/what_we_do/where/gb