This initiative is not open to funding enquiries or applications.

In 2017, The Clothworkers’ Company donated £750,000 to The Clothworkers’ Foundation, enabling us to actively research and invest in suitable opportunities for social investment. In 2018, we committed the first £200,000 to the Stepping Stones Finance Facility – a follow-on loan scheme for charities that have previously received a grant from the Stepping Stones Fund – delivered in partnership with City Bridge Trust and UBS.

Social Investment initiatives:

• In 2020, we invested £50,000 in London Play Design under the Stepping Stones Finance Facility. London Play Design is a Community Interest Company (CIC) and not-for-profit social enterprise that designs and builds natural playgrounds for young children in London. It is the trading arm of London Play, a charity that works to ensure that children have the space, time and freedom to play. The £50,000 loan, which repayable over five years, has been designated for bulk purchases of treated timber and to fund apprenticeship courses for London Play employees. 
• In 2020, we also committed £150,000 to CAF Venturesome, the social investment arm of the Charities Aid Foundation. CAF Venturesome aims to provide social enterprises, charities, and community-led groups with the affordable, repayable finance they need to sustain and grow their social impact. It is supported by funders like us that want to use some of their charitable funds to achieve a social and financial return. 
• In early 2021, we made a £250,000 investment in the Women in Safe Homes (WISH) fund. This property fund has been created as a solution to the lack of affordable, safe and secure homes for women affected by domestic abuse and those experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness.