Make An Impact Podcast

Send us Fan Mail

Cecile is the Founder and Managing Partner at Impact First Investments, a firm which retains the energy and talent of entrepreneurship to make the world better.

Blending purpose, capital and tech seemed entirely logical, she tells Heidi in this episode, which covers:

• How Cecile got started in impact investing.
• Some of her interesting and impactful investees.
• Why half of the companies Impact First Investments invests into are founded by women.
• What's changed since Cecile started making investments for impact.
• How Cecile captures the impact that Impact First Investments has as an organisation when it is investing in so many different things.
• Cecile's own impact measurement methodology.
• Why Cecile says you can divide the world into impact natives and impact migrants.
• How and why Cecile seeks to make "impact investing" obsolete.

Enjoyed this episode? Please subscribe to get other episodes whenever they come out - and leave a review or rating so other people can discover our fascinating (and impactful) guests.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

HugglePets in the Community is a community interest company working with children, young people and adults. It offers animal-assisted therapy, in which a therapist works with animals to help people with their mental health.

This pioneering and unique social enterprise is based in Wolverhampton, where nearly 4000 children & over 21,000 adults are affected by stress, anxiety and severe mental health issues. Research shows animal assisted therapy can improve mental health and wellbeing.

In this episode, Hannah Dixon describes:

• Huggle wants as many people as possible to use its services is building the UK's first community aquarium and sensory activity centre.
• How Huggle's plans have been backed by the community through a successful crowdfunding campaign which raised over £90,000. How did Huggle hit its target?
• Why partnership working has been crucial in getting this far.
• Hannah's future plans.
• How Huggle measures its impact.
• The biggest challenges Hannah's faced so far and her advice to other social entrepreneurs.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

We've all heard stories which have horrified us.

But when Dave Linton was told how most children in care transport all their possessions - their lives - in black bin bags, he wasn't only shocked and appalled. He resolved to do something about it.

Dave, a former youth worker, launched social enterprise Madlug CIC to give dignity to children in care.

Madlug stands for Make a Difference Luggage and makes "incredible bags." For every Madlug bag bought by a member of the public a giving bag, centred around the needs of children in care, is donated.

In this inspirational episode, Dave covers:

• His lightbulb moment and why he launched Madlug
• Starting the business with just £500 and where he focused his energy first
• The most difficult challenge he faced to get the business up and running
• How Madlug grew
• Its impact so far, not only from giving over 10,000 bags to children, but further impact too
• Future plans
• Advice for other social entrepreneurs

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

Sophie Lejeune is founder of Society Zero, a zero-waste shop and community action group based in Glasgow and operating in the Central Belt of Scotland.

When she launched Society Zero there were no zero-waste shops in Glasgow, and Sophie was concerned that many environmental groups didn't or couldn't engage with marginalised people.

Sophie discusses Society Zero's work making zero waste products accessible to everyone.

She covers the Circular Economy and why normalising behaviour away from buying new and single-use items is crucial, while understanding that not everyone has the same opportunity or ability to reduce, reuse and recycle.

In this episode Sophie also describes Society Zero's approaches to measuring impact, some exciting future plans and the biggest challenges she has faced while building the social enterprise.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

Craig Carey is co-founder and director of business at Bubble Chamber CIC which specialises in business consultancy for other social enterprises.

Before "taking the leap" to launch Bubble Chamber a few years ago, Craig worked in a bank, studied for an MBA, became interested in international development and worked in Africa, helped charities with strategic planning and then spent 5 years at Social Enterprise UK.

Now Craig helps social enterprises address 5 core strategic areas, including clarity of purpose, effective leadership, developing and nurturing talent and more.

In this episode Craig and Heidi cover the biggest challenges to social enterprises' sustainability and discuss strategies you can implement in your own social enterprise to empower your people and increase your resilience.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

Kath Austin is the founder of BeeBee Wraps, creator of reusable natural food wraps made from organic cotton and beeswax.

Plastic-free and compostable, BeeBee Wraps are now stocked in hundreds of stores and sell in their thousands online.

Kath started making BeeBee Wraps herself when she wanted to find alternatives to single-use plastics including cling-film. Friends wanted to use the wraps themselves and encouraged Kath to launch a business.

2 and a half years later BeeBee Wraps have saved over 7.3 million pieces of plastic from being used and potentially sent to landfill or ending up in the sea.

In the conversation Kath talks about:

• starting the business as part of a social venture incubation programme, Cambridge Social Ventures,
• how the business has grown,
• collaborations including with Sky Ocean Rescue and celebrities including Cara Delevingne,
• working with partners such as Abel and Cole and The Woodland Trust,
• how BeeBee Wraps measure its environmental impact,
• the massive cumulative effect of many micro-impacts,
• what stimulates behaviour change,
• how BeeBee Wraps are made,
• BeeBee Wraps' plans for the future, and more.

If you enjoy the podcast, please share it - and even leave a rating or review so other people can find it too.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

Julie Haywood is director of community investment for WHG, a "profit for purpose" housing association in Walsall.

Her role is focused on people: happier people have better lives, she says.

In this episode Julie describes WHG's investment into communities and how it creates opportunities for people.

Housing associations are anchor organisations, says Julie, and although commercial they should make profit for a purpose, to build and invest in stronger communities.

Social value includes digital and financial inclusion, money management, helping people to move into the job market and other and wraparound support. It helps tenants pay their rent and stay in their homes.

Julie also covers:

• Cross subsidy to build more homes.
• WHG's buying power means it plays a big role in community transformation.
• The biggest barriers to achieving effective social value.
• WHG's community investment strategy.
• Supporting local businesses to become part of the WHG supply chain.
• Social value is part of WHG's overall corporate plan with clear KPIs (Key Performance Indicators).
• WHG's plans for the future when it comes to social value.

Enjoyed the podcast? Please leave a review or rating! And if you are interested in being interviewed and are from an existing social enterprise creating a proven impact, please contact presenter Heidi Fisher at Make An Impact CIC.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

Beth Pilgrim is CEO and the co-founder of Supply Change, a platform connecting social enterprises with public sector organisations to help them drive impact in their local communities.

In this episode, she describes how Supply Change is opening up public sector procurement to help more social enterprises win tenders and secure contracts.

We cover:

• Beth's background and how she came to co-found Supply Change.
• The biggest barriers social enterprises face in accessing public sector supply chains – and how Supply Change addresses them.
• What lit Beth's "fire in the belly" for social enterprise and impact?
• Is buying from a social enterprise a riskier proposition than buying from other businesses? Some public sector procurement officers think so. Beth explains how Supply Change's due diligence process mitigates risks to buyers and helps social enterprises become public sector contract-ready.
• Why access to flexible social investment is so important to many social enterprises.
• Are there any priority areas in which the public sector is particularly interested in working with social enterprises?
• Why Heidi is so excited about Beth's world vision for 5 years time.
• How to contact Beth and Supply Change.

Enjoyed the podcast? Please leave a review or rating! And if you are interested in being interviewed and are from an existing social enterprise creating a proven impact, please contact presenter Heidi Fisher at Make An Impact CIC.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

Jean Jarvis MBE is the managing director of Fuse Enterprise CIC, part of Wrekin Housing Group, a £70m-turnover organisation using its spending power to buy social, embedding social value into every decision, and using champions to spread the social enterprise message.

Fuse has a cleaning, grounds maintenance and environmental services division which has grown from 1 to 13 staff, and launched and manages the Northfield Centre, a Social Enterprise Hub including a women's refuge, GP surgery and pharmacy in Staffordshire.

Jean also leads on social investment in the Wrekin Housing Group. When Fuse originally became part of Wrekin in 2013 few people knew about social enterprise, but now the group recognises itself as a social enterprise.

In this episode Jean covers Wrekin's journey embracing (and becoming a) social enterprise and delivering social value. She talks about:

• Her excitement over Wrekin's transition into a social enterprise.
• How Jean built support for the social investment strategy.
• Social value is now embedded into decisions made throughout Wrekin.
• Measuring a range of social value metrics to be reported at every board meeting.
• Recognising the need to buy local as well as social.
• Building capacity in the social enterprise sector and building an environment of social awareness.
• How Wrekin's 35+ social enterprise champions were recruited and educated, spread the word and build enthusiasm for social enterprise.
• They also promote replication and a culture of change.
• Why Jean believes all businesses should be social enterprises – and other housing associations should follow Wrekin's examples.

Enjoyed the podcast? Please leave a review or rating! And if you are interested in being interviewed and are from an existing social enterprise creating a proven impact, please contact presenter Heidi Fisher at Make An Impact CIC.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.

Send us Fan Mail

Playphysio has a big, hairy and audacious goal: to reduce the cost of care by £20m per year for children with cystic fybrosis.

In this episode of the Make An Impact podcast, Will explains how Playphysio is using technology to make a real impact on the lives and health of children with cystic fybrosis as well as making huge savings for the NHS.

Playphysio develops software and electronic monitors to monitor physiotherapy treatment for chronically sick children - enabling them to become "players not patients."

Will covers:

• His and his daughter's daily struggle managing her original treatment, which inspired family arguments and led Will to realise thousands of families experience the same frustrations.
• Why he launched Playphysio as a community interest company and became an accidental social entrepreneur.
• Getting a place on the Cambridge Social Ventures programme.
• Transferable skills from his previous careers as a product designer and running a web development company.
• The development path, integrating software with hardware and gaining regulatory approvals.
• How the app reduces the number of times a nurse has to visit their patients and increases children's happiness at appointments.
• Collecting data demonstrating improvements in patients' medical conditions and the potential to reduce the cost of care by £20 million.
• The customisable format of the app format means in the future it could be used for other medical conditions and types of treatment 
• Social investment: Playphysio secured a loan from Foundation East, unlocking a further grant and enabling continued development.
• Will’s biggest lesson (so far) and how to contact him and Playphysio.

Enjoyed the podcast? Please leave a review or rating! And if you are interested in being interviewed and are from an existing social enterprise creating a proven impact, please contact presenter Heidi Fisher at Make An Impact CIC.

Support the show

Hi, I'm Heidi Fisher, the host of the Make an Impact Podcast.  I'm an impact measurement expert, passionate about helping you make a bigger impact in the world by maximising the impact your services have.

 I can help you to measure, manage and communicate the impact you have better to funders, investors, commissioners and other stakeholders, and to systemise your data collection and analysis so that it frees up time and doesn't become an additional burden.  

I love helping you to measure social and economic impacts, including Social Return on Investment or value for money assessments, as part of understanding the change you make to peoples' lives.

 You can get in touch via LinkedIn or the website makeanimpactcic.co.uk if you'd like to find out more about working with me.