The Investment Activator Programme

Since Engine Shed opened in 2013, we’ve had a focus on the investment agenda – particularly access to investment for growing businesses in the South West of England.

 

The problem we hope to solve

With companies in London securing 49% of all UK equity deals and 63% of total investment value, there is more work to do to reduce the barriers to growth in the region.

It takes a UK founder 6-8 months on average to raise investment, and only 9% of VC investment goes to all-female founder teams and less than 2% to Black and ethnic minority-led businesses.

While equity funding isn’t the right route for every company, building a stronger and more regionally balanced investment ecosystem will be key to fostering long-term innovation and economic growth.

 

What we are doing

In 2019, we launched the Quarterly Investment Briefing, a quarterly series to bring investors together to network, share insights and access investment opportunities. These sessions complement the Annual Investment Report, which tracks trends in the South West’s funding landscape.

We also partnered with techSPARK to support Silicon Gorge – the region’s flagship pitch competition. Silicon Gorge has introduced over 150 of the most promising early-stage startups to investor, such as Immersive Labs and Condense Reality.

The Pitch Me! online event series offers a safe space for founders to refine their pitches, and provides startups with direct feedback from experienced investors and industry experts. It helps early-stage businesses sharpen their fundraising strategy and improve their chances of securing investment.  

We are committed to helping founders from idea to Series A. Through 10+ South West Founders meetups annually, we bring together over 60 early-stage entrepreneurs to share experiences, connect with peers, and learn from industry leaders. This is complemented by a strong digital presence, where we publish startup success stories and guidance articles to reach thousands of founders across the region.

In 2021, the Investment Activator Programme (IAP) was launched, designed to support companies and investors to increase the flow of equity investment in the South West.

 

Over the last 5 years

Since the programme was launched, it has:

  • Run over 90 investment events
  • Supported more than 500 startups and scaleups in their fundraising efforts
  • Highlighted investment asks totalling £290M+, connecting founders with the right investors
  • Built up a community of over 800 angel and institutional investors interested in our ecosystem

Despite a challenging investment climate, the South West’s ecosystem remains resilient. Our work continues to address funding gaps, support underrepresented founders, and ensure more companies secure the backing they need to scale. 

 

More about the Investment Activator Programme

IAP is supported by both public and private sector organisations: Engine Shed, Bristol Innovations, TLT, British Business Bank, Link Stone Advisory and Walmer Group.

For more information, visit the IAP website or download the IAP Report 2022