Fearlessly, a mental health social enterprise has received £25,000 in grant funding from the Scottish Government’s Social Entrepreneurs Fund. The awards were delivered by Firstport, Scotland’s development agency for start-up social enterprise.
Eve Hepburn, the founder of Fearlessly, was one of 18 social entrepreneurs to secure a share of £182,639 funding in the latest round of Firstport’s Start It and Built It awards.
Eve received a Build It award, which supports social entrepreneurs, who have proven their business concept and social impact, to commit to their business full time by covering living costs for a year.
Fearlessly, which works on a national scale, tackles the paramount and systematic problem of mental ill-health amongst young people. Having started trading in February 2018, the Fearlessly magazine is written by and for those affected by mental illness and has already been successful in obtaining over 20,000 readers in 129 countries with numbers growing every day.
With a dedicated social media following, Fearlessly has created an online creative community, in which young people can talk openly about their mental health challenges.
Since Eve launched the social enterprise, it has become a leading voice in Scotland’s discourse around mental health and feminism, and used this influence to de-stigmatise mental health in society through young adult-focussed public campaigns.
Fearlessly is looking to develop considerably in 2019, with plans to launch a range of mental health services targeted at universities. Having obtained the Build It funding Fearlessly is now looking to take the business to the next step through hiring a Business Development Manager and Sales Assistant, to scale-up the business and reach more universities across the UK.
Eve Hepburn (above) said: “The Build It Award has been crucial to taking our next step and developing as a business. The award will allow us to roll out a series of commercial products that are focussed on improving the mental health of young adults in higher education and the workplace.
“We are also massively excited to have re-branded (launched on the 14th January) as part of our mission to support as many young adults as we can. As such, we’ve changed our name to ‘Fearlessly’ and our aim is to reach out to feminists of all genders in our quest to rid society of mental health stigma and to address the structural inequalities – including gender discrimination – that are often core to mental ill-health.
“We launched the first ‘Fearlessly’ edition of our digital magazine, which people can access through a pay-what-you-can-afford subscription to our ‘Rebel Base’ from as little as £1 per month.”
Eve was one of 18 individuals from across Scotland to share a total of £182,639 grant funding as part of this latest round of Start It and Build It awards, delivered by Firstport.
Josiah Lockhart, Chief Executive of Firstport, said: “We are delighted to be supporting 18 more social entrepreneurs in this latest round of seed funding.
“Fearlessly is a great example of a creative and multi-dimensional social enterprise, that not only offers support to those with mental ill-health but also challenges the dominant stigma that exists in society today. As the enterprise grows it will open doors for new ways of talking about mental illness, and ensure the voices of those most affected are leading this change.”
Details of the award winners, by area:
Start It:
North Ayrshire
- Shary Bourne, Gie’s Peace Mindful Parenting, £4,950
East Ayrshire
- Mark Gallagher, Café Solace, £5,000
South Lanarkshire
- Natalie Young, Peaceful People program, £5,000
Edinburgh
- Kirstie Campbell, The Scottish Seabuckthorn CIC, (Seabuckthorn Scotland CIC?) £5,000
Glasgow
- Padam Singh, Creative Minds Scotland C.I.C, £4,350
- Natalia Manczak, N/A, £5,000
- Tony Johnson, B.O.W. (Barista Or Waster), £3,600
- Cameron Campbell, My Hygiene Kit, £5,000
- Jennifer Bates, What Happens Next?, £4,935
East Dunbartonshire
- Danielle McDonald, MAKE, £4,904
- Stuart Fyfe, Community Mental Wellbeing Support, £4,900
Fife
- Glyn Thompson, Sense of Direction Enterprises, £5,000
Perth & Kinross
- Andrew Douglas, Scotland All-Strong, £5,000
Build It:
East Lothian
- Sarah Middlemiss, Ferns Kitchen Catering CIC, £25,000
Edinburgh
- Eve Hepburn, Fearlessly CIC £25,000
- Gary Young, The Mindful Enterprise? £25,000
Glasgow
- Brian Morgan, Jangling Space, £20,000
Stirling
- Joyce Murray, Positive Changes (Scotland) CIC, £25,000
What is social enterprise?
Social enterprise is about running a business, making a profit, and using that money to create a positive social impact. It is a way of doing business which focuses on tackling social problems, strengthening communities, improving people’s life chances or protecting the environment, as opposed to generating profit for private individuals or bodies. Any surplus income, after covering running costs and salaries, is reinvested in the business and goes towards its social aims.
Firstport
Established in 2007, Firstport is Scotland’s development agency for start-up social enterprise. We offer a full package of free business support and resources that includes start-up funds, business advice, practical tools and connections. Firstport delivers an awards programme, which distributes money from the Scottish Government’s Social Entrepreneurs Fund.
Social Entrepreneurs Fund
Since 2009, the Social Entrepreneurs Fund has made 618 awards and distributed £4.76 million across Scotland.
Start It awards are focused on piloting entirely new ideas that are yet to get off the ground. Budding entrepreneurs can apply for up to £5000 to cover essential start-up costs.
Build It awards are for more developed enterprises, still at an early stage but able to show evidence of a track record in generating income and social impact. Individuals can apply for up to £20,000 towards one person’s salary/living costs for a year. An additional £5000 is available in cases where more than one role is being created, or to help cover equipment or other costs associated with a new employed post.
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