[PRESS RELEASE] Funding Circle and Linklaters Partner With Hatch Enterprise to Launch a New Business Support Programme for Disabled Founders

Linklaters and Funding Circle have partnered with Hatch Enterprise to build and deliver a specialised version of the charity’s Get Ready To Start programme. The programme, designed for Disabled people with a business idea they want to develop, provided guidance to 19 Disabled founders.

Between January and March 2026, the programme supported 19 people with a business idea to explore entrepreneurship, helping them decide whether running a business was right for them, or whether their idea was even a viable one in the first place.

For many Disabled people, mainstream employment can feel like a space that was never designed with them in mind. Progress towards accessible workplaces is slow, reasonable adjustments are hard-won, and these realities make the modern workplace a difficult place to be for many of us living with disabilities. 

In response, entrepreneurship is becoming a more visible, more viable form of employment, offering a way to work that suits their individual needs and the opportunity to bring innovations to life that build a better world. 

Together with over 25 volunteers from Linklaters and Funding Circle, each participant received vital learning opportunities that covered the fundamentals of starting a business, alongside a suite of opportunities to build a thriving peer network.

Founders also received incremental feedback and guidance from our outstanding volunteers, who contributed over 80 hours of expert guidance to the cohort, drawing on their significant experience in areas such as customer research, legal requirements, and pitching. 

Hatch Enterprise, Funding Circle and Linklaters are committed to levelling the playing field for underrepresented entrepreneurs in the UK by ensuring that Disabled and neurodivergent founders are able to access meaningful opportunities and a supportive environment for their business idea to thrive. 

By the end of the programme, nearly half (47%) refined or pivoted their business models throughout the duration of the programme, responding to new insights and feedback with the kind of adaptability demanded by entrepreneurship. 89% of participants had either already launched their business or have plans to do so within the next 12 months. Collectively, programme alumni will also be seeking over £2.5 million in equity, grant, loan and donation funding.

Ed Shearer, Get Ready To Start programme graduate and founder of Neurodivergent Joy said, “Before I started the course, I never thought I would be an entrepreneur. Over the last three months, this has changed my mind. 

Now I am officially self employed and have a viable business idea. The course has given me the confidence to step out and really make a go of it. Being autistic, sometimes I don’t see myself in a positive light. 

That has changed and thanks to Get Ready To Start. It has changed my life.”

Lucy Harrison, Social Impact Senior Advisor at Linklaters LLP said, “We are proud to partner with Hatch. Their focus on backing disabled and neurodivergent founders aligns strongly with our social impact strategy, which aims to empower communities by improving access to education, employment and enterprise, and by supporting environmental sustainability. 

Through skilled volunteering and financial support, we want to build partnerships that create positive social impact for underserved and underrepresented groups who are growing sustainable enterprises that drive community-led, inclusive local economies. 

The Get Ready to Start programme is a powerful example of this in action. Taking part in Demo Day as a volunteer ‘friendly dragon’ was a real highlight for me personally. I heard powerful pitches from founders whose businesses are rooted in their lived experience of being neurodivergent and/or disabled, and it was clear how much their confidence and clarity had grown. It was inspiring to see them ready to take their ideas to the next stage.”

Reem Akl, ESG Manager at Funding Circle said, “We were delighted to continue working with our partners at Hatch Enterprise. At Funding Circle, we help power small businesses in the UK, and we know how vital they are to the UK economy and communities, creating jobs and sustaining livelihoods. We recognise that diverse entrepreneurs experience unique challenges when it comes to starting or growing their business, and accessing finance. We’re particularly proud to have backed this iteration of the Get Ready to Start programme, dedicated to supporting disabled and neurodivergent entrepreneurs in the early stages of their journey.”

Rebekah Sun, CEO at Hatch Enterprise said, “Given the significant barriers Disabled people face in society, especially in employment right now, running a specialised ‘Get Ready To Start’ cohort for aspiring entrepreneurs with disabilities felt timely and relevant. 

It has successfully shown participants that entrepreneurship and building something of your own is genuinely possible with the right tools in your arsenal.

None of it would have been possible without the incredible commitment of our partners at Linklaters and Funding Circle, whose volunteers brought expertise, warmth, and genuine investment in these founders’ success to the Hatch table. The result has been watching participants make life-changing decisions about their futures and capabilities, which is exactly why this work matters so much to us at Hatch Enterprise.”