Written question asked by Gareth Davies (Conservative) on Monday, 15 March 2021, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 17 March 2021. It was answered by Matt Warman (Conservative) on Tuesday, 23 March 2021 on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

Big Society Capital: Cost Effectiveness

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the value for money of Big Society Capital since its inception.

Answer: In July 2020, The Oversight Trust published an independent review of Big Society Capital (BSC) as part of its role in overseeing the organisation. This report outlined the progress BSC has made towards its objectives as a social investment wholesaler and market-builder, including in mobilising private capital for social investment. Since 2011, BSC has signed £680m of investments to support social enterprises and charities, and has leveraged £1.4bn of investments from private investors alongside this. This has contributed to 97 fund level investments and provided capital to over 1,200 charities and social enterprises, with 73% of these organisations located in the 50% most deprived places in the UK.

Secondary information