Entrepreneurs launch report into lack of funding for local women

A lack of clarity around funding options, gender bias and exclusion from regional peer networks are some of the biggest barriers for female entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland, according to a new report.

Launched recently, The Women’s Investor Ready Project [tWIRP], highlights the challenges which exist for businesswomen and explores what can be done to overcome these.

The new alliance. made up of four of NI’s leading female entrepreneurs, Nuala Murphy, Alyson Hogg, Lisa Strutt and Grainne Kelly, has laid out its priorities for improving the landscape for female entrepreneurs and is calling for employers, investors, and business leaders to address the cultural bias which exists for women in workplaces right across Northern Ireland.

Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative data from over 100 respondents with firsthand experience of starting or scaling a business in NI, the report paints a picture of the ecosystem for women entrepreneurs by asking questions about past and current experiences of raising capital, overall experience as a female entrepreneur, and suggestions for improvement. Feedback was collected across a number of industries and from women at varying stages of their business journey.

Key findings from the report suggest that female entrepreneurs value regional peer networks but often feel excluded from these and struggle with reaching networks beyond the NI market. While many contributors had experience of an accelerator programme, some felt these programmes could improve their skills in the sectors embraced by women. A lack of clarity around funding options in the region continues to create difficulties for those business owners trying to raise capital and almost all participants repeatedly noted very clear examples of gender bias when seeking funding.

In a joint statement, the representatives of tWIRP, said: “Northern Ireland has undergone a significant amount of transformation in recent years and has rightly earned a global reputation as being an excellent place to live, work and invest. That said, it’s no longer to acceptable to ignore the fact that female entrepreneurs are being left behind. tWIRP is seeking to give leadership to women across all sectors and provide new policy solutions to create a modern economy that better reflects their needs and ambitions.

“The team at tWIRP found the publication of the Rose Review in 2018 and the subsequent revelation that only 1% of investment funds go to female owned businesses to be an alarming figure and it’s simply not good enough that such little progress has been made since. Collectively, we decided that the time was right to start asking questions and get to the bottom of when and how things might change for female entrepreneurs.

“It was imperative to have our own evidence-based approach which would underpin all of our work and provide us with a clearer understanding of the entrepreneurial landscape in Northern Ireland. These valuable insights will now guide the next stage of our work which focuses on redressing the gender imbalance in a meaningful way.

“Now we know the common challenges women are facing, we can begin to implement some targeted solutions. We want to deliver services which not only support the entrepreneur with existing challenges but will include strategies to become more investor ready. Part of this will include establishing a mentor-matching scheme; pairing mentors who have relevant experience, skills and access with entrepreneurs who will benefit most from this engagement and creating a central hub where individuals can find all the information they need about the range of support, services and funding available.

“Finally, by coming together we want to create a louder voice for female entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland and press decision makers to implement policies and legislative changes that will help unlock this untapped potential. Inadequate childcare provision, issues around bias and a fundamental lack of understanding have all contributed to women taking a back seat and we simply cannot allow this underrepresentation to continue. We are ready to work with all of our partners, business organisations, chambers of commerce, and other relevant stakeholders to create a more progressive entrepreneurial landscape and see real change take hold.”

Ulster Bank is one of the first organisations to pledge support for the project and has welcomed the initiative’s commitment to following up on the government-backed Rose Review which was spearheaded by now CEO of the NatWest Group, Alison Rose.

John Ferris, Regional Ecosystem manager, added: “Ulster Bank is proud to back the Women’s Investor Ready Project and welcomes the findings from the report. Northern Ireland has a strong business community, but we know that this could and should be evolved even further by levelling the playing field for women-led businesses.

“As one of the earliest providers of a business accelerator programme, we are particularly focused on the feedback and learnings within this space and look forward to working with the team at tWIRP to implement some of the report’s recommendations to ensure that female entrepreneurs are well positioned to compete for and access the same funding opportunities as their male counterparts.”

Other supporters of the initiative include Women in Business; Belfast City Council and InterTradeIreland.

To view the full report, visit www.investorreadyproject.org or follow @investorreadyni to keep up to date with the initiative.

For more information on Ulster Bank’s accelerator programme including details on how to apply, visit www.ulsterbank.com/accelerator .

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper whenever you are able to do so.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper when you can safely.

You can also enjoy unlimited access to the best news from across Northern Ireland and the UK by subscribing to newsletter.co.uk

With a digital subscription, you can read more than five articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Thank you