ALMOST one in five Scots has benefited from investment in just 130 social enterprises, charities and community groups, it is claimed.
The claim comes from Social Investment Scotland, which backs social businesses and good causes that may struggle to secure finance from mainstream lenders.
In its annual social impact report, released today, the fund says as many as 1.09 million of the country’s 5.4 million people benefited either directly or indirectly from its work.
Almost 40 per cent of the total are said to come from the country’s most deprived areas, and the funder, which is active across every region, says the impact is most keenly felt in Edinburgh, Glasgow and the Highlands and Islands.
Alastair Davis, chief executive of Social Investment Scotland, said: “Not only are we supporting these organisations to grow and prosper, creating jobs and revenue, but we are also seeing more people in Scotland’s most marginalised communities positively impacted by the amazing work carried out by our customers, day in, day out.”
Organisations aided in recent years by Social Investment Scotland, which offers loans from £10,000 to £1.6m, include Laggan Wolftrax mountain bike centre in the Cairngorms National Park, Spartans Community Football Academy in Edinburgh and Glasgow community interest company Glad Cafe.
Last year the lender backed a total of 127 organisations with total turnover of £182m. The number of clients becoming financially sustainable rose seven per cent over the period, with one quarter relying on trading and other income instead of grant funding.
Meanwhile, seven in ten organisations predict their turnover will increase, and all expect to take on more staff within two years.
Davis said: “While economic conditions over the past year have been testing, our customers remain broadly optimistic about both their revenue and employment prospects over the coming years. We have been doing a lot of work with organisations across Scotland to help them become more investment-ready, and this appears to be paying off.
“Only by becoming more financially sustainable can these organisations plan for the future, targeting growth, greater employment and increased impacts.”
Chairman Nick Kuenssberg added: “SIS will continue to retain a singular focus on increasing social impacts across Scotland and the numbers of people benefitting from these impacts. Whether these impacts are delivered by ambitious third-sector organisations or by innovative socially-focused entrepreneurs, we will underpin them as best we can with the right capital and support to meet their requirements to succeed.”
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