FIRST's founder receives Innovate UK's Women in Innovation Award

50 of the UK’s leading women entrepreneurs backed by Innovate UK for game-changing ideas

Innovate UK launched Women in Innovation in 2016, after research revealed that just 1 in 7 applications for Innovate UK support came from women. £250 billion of new value that could be added to the UK economy if women started and scaled new businesses at the same rate as men. Since then, it has invested £7.6 million in over 160 trailblazing women and convened a vibrant community of over 9,500 business leaders, ambassadors, and allies. The award programme empowers women business leaders to develop commercially successful solutions to major social, environmental, and economic challenges. Women in Innovation is part of Innovate UK’s commitment to promote greater diversity and inclusion in business innovation. 

This year, over 900 applicants were received and 50 businesses chosen with FIRST being one of them! Our project will develop a set of indicators which assist in capturing the true economic and social value of enterprise skills and entrepreneurship. Learning resources will then be shared so that cross sector organisations can evidence and monitor their social return on investment for impact relating to entrepreneurship and enterprise skills. 

We can't wait to get started with our amazing partners and look forward to updating with progress.