Fast growing social enterprise Realise Futures has scooped a prestigious national award for excellence - marking the end of another successful year of trading for the Suffolk-based social enterprise.
Realise Futures - which helps people who are disabled and disadvantaged with skills and learning, careers advice and jobs - won the Trailblazing Newcomer Award run by the RBS SE100 Index, an online listing of social ventures ranked and scored according to their growth and social impact.
Rob Wilson, Minister for Civil Society, who presented the Trailblazing Newcomer Award said: “Social enterprises play an important role in supporting the economy and strengthening local communities right around the UK. Key to their continued growth will be their ability to demonstrate clearly the vital impact they are making and so I would encourage all social enterprises and charities to sign up to the RBS SE100, which will help them to do this.”Judges said that, as a newcomer social enterprise, Realise Futures had made great strides to stand out from the crowd and become a leader amongst their peers. The company combined solid growth with a commitment to proving the positive impact of its business.
Five winners were chosen from 1,365 social ventures listed on the RBS SE100 Index in the UK. Realise Futures will share the £30,000 prize money with award winners of the other categories from the East and West Midlands and the North West.
Sarah Sharlott, Realise Futures Chief Executive Officer and Adrian Scarratt, Realise Futures Head of Corporate Resources, collected the award at the Good Deals Conference in Euston, London, on Monday, November 24.
Chief Executive Officer Sarah Sharlott praised the work of the employees and their dedication to the company’s social mission.
She said: “It is tremendously gratifying to see how far we have come in such a relatively short space of time. We are passionate about the social aspect of our work and really believe a Social Enterprise model can work successfully, as we have proved.
“We are absolutely thrilled to have won this award, coming as it does at the end of our second year of trading,” she added.
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