Rachel Drapper

Essential Reading 🔥Thank you for sharing Prof Habib Naqvi MBE your quotation is spot on “…Racism has deep historical roots; it is pervasive, and it is embedded in the structure of our society. We find ourselves at a pertinent time in history; now is the time to wake up to the scale of inequality and remove the scourge of racism from our society and improve health for all” 🦋 Main Report: Structural Racism, Ethnicity and Health Inequalities in London, (1 October 2024) ULC Institute of Health Equity Authors: Professor Sir Michael Marmot UCL, Jessica Allen, Peter Goldblatt, Scarlet Willis, Jamaica Noferini, Owen Callaghan. See also BMJ Article Michael Marmot, Habib Naqvi, Cordelle Ofori, Kevin Fenton The report examines three ways in which racism can damage health: 1️⃣ Direct effect of experiencing racism at the hands of institutions or individuals 2️⃣ Racism can lead to ethnic inequalities in the social determinants of health including poverty, poor housing, poorer employment prospects, inequity in educational and criminal justice systems 3️⃣ Impact through the operations of health and care systems, particularly ethnic inequalities and experiences of discrimination and racism in maternity and mental health services. https://lnkd.in/efXhuYvu

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✍🏻 Our latest study reaffirms the value that Social Outcomes Contracts bring to public service delivery, helping to prevent social problems and delivering meaningful change for the community. Our Managing Director, Aman Johal tells Impact-Investor.com, "We think this co-payment model in particular works very well. We would really like to see more central government-backed outcome funds in the areas where there is already a significant track record of where this works, such as homelessness, health, children’s services, education and employment." Read the full article to discover why SOCs are considered the best way to offer flexible, holistic solutions to the most challenging social issues. 🔗 https://bit.ly/3VmMh8g #SocialOutcomesContracts #SocialInvestment

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🌍 Launch 🌍 We are thrilled to announce the digital launch of the #LambethClimatePartnership platform! This new platform will highlight the vast range of climate initiatives happening across the borough and create opportunities for more organisations to join this crucial mission. It includes a visual dashboard that tracks the borough’s progress towards our climate goals, ensuring transparency and accountability. Founded by 12 leading organisations in Lambeth, the partnership represents key sectors such as health, housing, culture, education, and skills. It is designed for organisations from all sectors that are committed to incorporating #climateaction into their objectives, operations, logistics, building management, staff activities, and overall impact on community health and well-being. Our aim is to foster cross-sector #collaboration, enabling the sharing of knowledge and expertise to drive Lambeth towards its #netzero targets. A big thanks to the climate team – particularly Fiona Hart, Emily Hirst, Georgia Faid, and Cassidy Travis – and our partners for their tremendous effort in developing this platform and showcasing the incredible climate action happening across the borough. King's College London, Guy's and St Thomas'​ NHS Foundation Trust, King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, National Theatre, Southbank Centre, LSBU Global, Metropolitan Thames Valley, Sustainable Ventures https://lnkd.in/egKdvnra

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Grant applications to fund innovation: I often see frustration from start ups spending time and effort applying for funding that they don’t get; often also paying for the services of “grant writing companies”. A score reduction post recommendation implementations, like reported in the post below, doesn’t seem to make sense and is very frustrating. It may have happened because there aren’t the same assessors each round, and scoring”s subjective. Having assessed grant applications (not for innovate) there’s usually a rubric and guidelines to follow for point criteria for each section: it would be super useful for applicants to be aware of what these criteria are, so they know how to fill in the sections and score points. I’m not sure how much policing of assessment goes on, to ensure assessors follow guidelines; which is needed to ensure consistency (feels lacking here) In my experience of being awarded grants, winning grants need someone writing it that is deeply connected to the research/development behind the innovation, that has clear oversight of the entire detail of the whole project management, experience of grant writing (usually academic background), with meaningful inputs from at least commercial and marketing and the business leadership WITHIN the business. An external grant writing company is none of these things. Academic institutions literally survive financially by securing grant funding, so pairing with an academic institution opens up support from their grant winning department, which you can then access without having To pay; you’ll also benefit from having free access to that academic expertise for the duration of the project, and you’ll have the kudos of association with an academic institution that you can market to gain credibility and traction, and PR support from the university too. So to me it makes sense to try to pair with an academic institution for grant funded innovation projects, or at least have an academic on your team with a career history of successful grant applications. SMART grants in particular are incredibly competitive, and you just never know who you are up against, so you should go into it without banking on getting funding, chances are you won’t. I’ve scored in the 80s before and not been successful. It’s a competition, and competition can be tough. An idea for a SMART grant project must be truly revolutionary and beyond state-of-the-art, not just new to the particular industry you’re in. The justification for hundreds of thousands to > £1M of public money to be given to your project must be really strong. One place that all innovation companies should be looking is at R&D tax credits on all of their business costs that can be attributed to research and development (eg product development). This is a surer way to secure funding support, and investment in an accounting firm that can support on this is perhaps more shrewd decision than paying a grant writing company.

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This week on Diaspora.nz ... the one and only Rachel Carrell !! Founder & CEO of Koru Kids - the UK's largest childcare network, responsible for training, matching, and providing ongoing support to over 10,000 nannies across London, to date. Joined by special co-host Phoebe Harrop, we discuss: ▶ Rachel's journey from New Zealand to the UK: hustling chocolates and home-grown lottery schemes on the streets of Invercargill; strategising her way into a Rhodes scholarship to “find her people” at the University of Oxford. ▶ The transition from consulting to entrepreneurship, and unique challenges of operating in the healthcare and childcare sectors. Which learnings from consulting transfer over to startups, vs. where she needed to invest in personal growth. ▶ The founding and early days of Koru Kids: addressing the critical need for quality childcare solutions, how the lack of accessible and affordable childcare has profound consequences for individuals and society. ▶ Scaling marketplaces: solving the “cold start problem” … building the supply side of a marketplace when the service provided requires specific qualifications, how to think about (and avoid) “de-platforming” risk. ▶ Insights into fundraising in Europe, particularly for companies in traditionally difficult sectors. Approaching fundraising with a mindset of learning and strategy development. ▶ Raising venture capital while pregnant, advice for other female (and- pregnant) founders who may need to do the same! ▶ Being a non-technical founder building a technical business has its challenges, but both approaches (tech-first or ops-first) can work with trade-offs. ▶ Rachel’s upcoming book! micro interventions with children to shape how they learn and grow. If you weren't already seeing enough of her in your feed — you'll want to hop over and give her a follow after this! Subscribe + listen, share it with a friend... links in comments 👇👇👇👇

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A Must ready blog   

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Oh look the most favourable maps to where industries have their offices with the highest paying jobs. Location, location, location. You can't get a high paying job in a geographical area with no high paying jobs. We need to encourage organisations to spread instead of cluster

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As the political discourse and pushback against DEI continues, so does the work within organisations to ensure businesses are diverse, equitable and inclusive. DEI work is still being done, just quieter... Argues the Financial Times in the US. Whatever the political leaning of the leaders within the business, many recognise the need to stay competitive and be an employer of choice. And this means continuing efforts to attract and keep the best talent by being as diverse and inclusive as possible. Is this the same for us in the UK? As Suella and Kemi continue to push their 'anti-woke' agenda, are UK based businesses still investing in DEI work? From my personal experience I would say yes, in general. I think. But I am very aware that may be just within my area and theme of work. And for all the progressive companies embracing true flexible working, there are some forcing employees back to the office. And for all the companies that kept their promises of 2020, there are some that haven't gone beyond the black square. What do you think? Are UK companies still investing in DEI, despite the anti-woke political discourse? Or have you seen a notable squeezing of budgets and downsizing of DEI teams and resources? #DEI #Inclusion #Diversity #Leadership https://lnkd.in/eFGmDjTG

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Some key highlights from the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) Spring Survey Report on #unpaidcarers: 👉 5 to 10 million carers in England and Wales, primarily women, contribute an estimated £162 billion annually in unpaid care. 👉 A growing number of carers, over 1.5 million, provide substantial care exceeding 50 hours per week. 👉 The unsustainable strain on unpaid carers persists, with many giving up paid work and suffering from poor mental health. 👉 88% of Directors report increased needs among carers, with burnout as a major contributing factor to carer breakdowns. 👉 Nearly half of the carers need more breaks or time off, highlighting a critical need for increased support. For me, the most striking stat in the report is that over a third of directors say their ability to support the needs of carers has *reduced*. But it doesn't have to be this way. Many authorities are commissioning digital carers services to complement their existing offer. They're finding this can be a cost-effective and quick way to: 📈 Increase system capacity by providing scalable support. 🚪 Enhance accessibility to resources and services. 🤗 Offer practical and emotional support efficiently. #CarersSupport #LocalAuthorities #DigitalTransformation #SocialCare #CostEffectiveness #MentalHealth #CareAct

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Social Outcomes Contracts support highly vulnerable people with complex overlapping needs - a fact recognised by Gordon Brown, in his foreword to our report on how social investment can drive better public services. Our report is based on new independent research showing that Social Outcomes Contracts have delivered £1.9b of public value in the UK, or £9 of value for every £1 spent by government. Greater government commitment to outcomes-based commissioning will lead to #OutcomesForAll - especially the most vulnerable in our society.

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Significant changes to Facebook fundraising tools in the EU. We highly recommend UK charities proceed as if this will roll out to the UK too in the not too distant future, and examine what giving channels you have in place and whether these will be affected. It's time to test performance of alternatives now so you can set benchmarks and understand any potential shortfall.

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Jayne-Anne Gadhia 69% less than men! 69%. Yes, NEDs pay, but it is so shocking. Seemingly decent people alow this to happen. This isn’t just one person furtively pulling the wool. Its a group of the most powerful people in the company usually. Some form of combination of The Chair/ Nom Co/Rem Co as well as CPO/CFO. Although the Executive Pay Gap is less it’s still there as you sadly show with your own example its only when someone in the know informs you of what the level of renumeration for your male predecessors was, do you get any where hear the number he was paid. I have been lucky enough to have key insiders, interestingly men, to thank for helping me negotiate packages commensurate with my male predecessors. But as you say it shouldn’t need this. It is so shocking and hurtful when you discover you have been party to the senior colleagues you trust have been party to exploitation. It also showed us how deeply embedded the behaviour is within the system and society. These people say they believe in a meretocracy (more proof of there innumeracy) but are still not able to reward the best candidate, if she is a wonan, the same as if she was a man. Truly shocking and depressing. I stared writing to any appointment panel and asking them to confirm in writing that in agreeing to the package, and its individual elements, I am not going to be agreeing to accept a gender pay gap. Found it quite helpful. The Pipeline

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Looking forward to our panel today on AI in healthcare

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🌟 Black Funding Network: Empowering Black-led Change with Patricia Hamzahee FRSA 🌟 The Black Funding Network (BFN) is transforming support for grassroots Black-led organisations across the UK with the aim to address the long-standing underfunding of Black-led community groups, which have often been overlooked by traditional funders. Patricia describes BFN as a “giving circle” that brings together individuals, companies, and organisations to support small, under-resourced grassroots groups—many of which operate with less than £100k in annual turnover and rely on volunteers. The network’s goal is to provide both financial aid and visibility to organisations making a real difference in Black communities. Patricia believes that community connections are key, with BFN events offering a platform for collaboration, resource-sharing, and mutual support. 💡 Learn more about Black Funding Network and its impact: https://lnkd.in/ejRTwpsf #BlackFundingNetwork #GiveBlack #Philanthropy #Grassroots #EmpoweringChange #CommunitySupport #BlackLedInitiatives #SocialImpact #UNSDG #SDG10 #ReducedInequalities #SDG17 #PartnershipsForTheGoals GiveBLACK UK

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Thanks for the shout-out Alina 💪 Any impact founder reading this, if you want: - meetings with your ideal investors lined up - to know how to connect with them by building deep trust - to get them more excited about your pitch Send me a DM that says "MAGNETIC" 🧲 Cheers! --- #AngelInvestor #SeedFunding #ImpactInvesting #StartupFunding #InvestorRelations

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The Power of Data-Led Fundraising: Lessons from Omaze and British Heart Foundation In today’s charity sector, data is not just a tool—it’s a game changer. One standout example is Omaze’s innovative approach to fundraising, blending compelling prize draws with a commitment to making a tangible impact. Their recent partnership with the British Heart Foundation (BHF), which raised millions to support vital research, highlights just how effective a data-driven strategy can be. What sets Omaze apart? Precision. By using data to personalise donor experiences, optimise outreach, and track every aspect of a campaign’s success, Omaze creates trust and transparency. It’s this meticulous attention to detail that not only raises funds but builds lasting relationships between donors and charities. It is very impressive! For organisations like the BHF, partnerships with data-led platforms like Omaze offer an opportunity to expand their reach and drive engagement with new audiences. It’s a brilliant reminder that when data and creativity combine, the results can be transformative. For UK charities looking to raise their voice and their impact, Omaze’s success is a call to action: embrace data, build trust, and think big. Read more in our blog here: https://lnkd.in/e99r_5Aq #FundraisingInnovation #DataDrivenStrategy #CharitySector #UKCharities #CharityData #FundraisingSuccess

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Investing time and resources into the development of a more #ESG and #responsiblegrowth-led organisation, is essential in the modern-day economy. I am so proud of Diane Vernon MBE FIEP and our team at EmployabilityUK for the work invested in helping organisations who are committed to this change, for the benefit of young people, business, and society overall! For more information, do visit www.employabilityuk.org or simply reach out. #Socialmobility #ESG #Youngpeople #BusinessGrowth

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A fascinating update blog from Sally Warren, Director General of the 10 Year Health Plan. A daunting task, but definitely one that health and science research organisations should be engaging with. Especially if you want the NHS to be more research friendly in future. "60,000 people have completed the initial survey. Over a thousand organisations have registered to submit a response - and those are due back with us on the 2nd December. We have more than 8000 ideas submitted on the website too - and it’s been great to see people voting for (and against!) people’s ideas, and engaging with some debate about them too. Seeing the scale of the response to date has been a sobering reminder of both the responsibility and the privilege to be working on shaping this plan about the NHS - a service which people care about so deeply."

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🚨 Frustrated, but not surprised! The latest from The Guardian (read it here: https://lnkd.in/eBW9Pq-p) reveals a harsh reality: if you’re a woman leading health tech, good luck getting funded. This isn’t new. It’s just another hurdle in the constant battle for women’s health equity. Dr Fiona Pathiraja-Møller, and others have drawn attention to this before, and yet we’re still here—fighting for the funding and attention that should already be flowing toward women’s health. How do we move forward? 1️⃣ Call it out, loudly. Silence perpetuates bias. 2️⃣ Invest with intent. Investors, it’s time to back women-led innovations that matter.  3️⃣ Don't wait for permission. Women in this space—create, innovate, and take your seat at the table... ...like Cecilia Lindgren and Paula Bellostas Muguerza and may others in this space. At Aneira Health, we’re all in on solutions for women's health. No excuses, no compromises. We don't have time to keep waiting. ⚡ #WomensHealth #FemTech #HealthcareInnovation #FundingBias #AneiraHealth #WomenInLeadership #HealthcareEquality

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