First Port for Social Entrepreneurs Limited

Firstport for Social Entrepreneurs Limited is Scotland's dedicated development agency empowering individuals to launch start-up social enterprises tackling entrenched social, environmental, and community challenges through innovative, sustainable ventures blending commercial viability with profound positive impact. Core values of innovation, empowerment, inclusivity, self-determination, and social responsibility drive their person-centred, partnership-driven philosophy, prioritizing motivated entrepreneurs with credible business models committed to local needs and broader policy influence. They believe lasting change arises from equipping individuals with knowledge, confidence, and networks to foster citizenship, community development, education, equality, diversity, and measurable social outcomes via catalytic support, bespoke mentoring, and peer connections.

They champion diverse entrepreneurial interventions addressing community regeneration through revitalising local high streets via community cafés and hubs, mental health promotion including school-based wellbeing programs, counselling, and peer support groups for young people and adults facing anxiety, depression, or health inequalities, environmental sustainability initiatives building green resilience and climate action, education enhancement via inclusive learning and skills training, social inclusion tackling barriers for marginalised communities, ethnic minorities, refugees, and LGBTQ+ individuals, digital access programs combating exclusion for older people and isolated residents, youth work focused on employability training, mentoring, and after-school activities for young people aged 16-25 facing unemployment or educational exclusion, rural isolation relief through outreach and befriending for remote communities, and employment pathways including job coaching for disadvantaged individuals with barriers like learning disabilities or complex needs. Supported models emphasize community-led, preventative, trauma-informed, holistic approaches delivering therapeutic activities, advocacy, drop-in centres, and early intervention for holistic resilience.

They exclude subsidiary projects of established organizations, non-independent ventures, and activities lacking direct measurable benefit or sustainability beyond grants. Distinctive for individual-led early-stage support over constituted groups, nationwide reach across urban, rural, and remote Scottish communities, and integrated business tools fostering entrepreneurial social enterprises with lived experience leadership, they prioritize driven applicants serving disadvantaged young people, unemployed adults, isolated elderly, health-inequity populations, and marginalised groups through scalable, evidence-based impact.