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Celebrating Ten Years of Hatch with a £100,000 Grant Round

Ten underrepresented founders from the Hatch community have been given a welcome boost to develop their businesses thanks to a £100,000 grant funding round in partnership with NatWest.

To celebrate our tenth anniversary we are thrilled to announce today the ten founders that have been awarded grants of £10,000 each, funded by NatWest. This 10×10 grant round was set up to enable business founders from diverse backgrounds to overcome barriers to growth typically faced by these groups in the start-up sector.

Applications to this round were open to graduates of Hatch programmes and support was targeted at underrepresented founders, particularly women, Disabled founders, and those from ethnic minority backgrounds. Of the awardees, nine were female founders and nine were running businesses based outside of London.

We’ve spent the past decade levelling the playing field for underrepresented groups in entrepreneurship and increasing the accessibility of business ownership, so this grant round was the perfect way to celebrate our anniversary.

NatWest has been a long standing supporter of Hatch, accelerating our growth last year with a donation of £1 million. The bank has sponsored our Launchpad and Incubator programmes in the past, helping entrepreneurs to develop the knowledge, skills, confidence and network needed to launch and grow their business.

NatWest logo

James Holian, Head of Business Banking at NatWest, said:

“At NatWest we believe no matter who you are or where you come from, with the right support, entrepreneurs from any background can succeed in business. Our research shows that breaking down barriers to entrepreneurship will not only make the UK fairer, but also stimulate growth of the wider UK economy.”

Rebekah Capon, Managing Director at Hatch Enterprise, said:

“Our mission at Hatch is to build a better world through entrepreneurship, supporting those typically underrepresented in the sector to launch and grow sustainable, successful businesses. Access to funding is a huge barrier to growth for any business, and even more so for historically marginalised communities.

“This partnership with NatWest is the perfect way for us to mark our tenth year as a charity, and we’re so pleased for the ten incredible founders awarded funding. Receiving these grants of £10,000 will make a real difference to the founders themselves, their businesses, and their wider communities.”

The 10x10 Grant Awardees

From a pool of incredibly impressive applicants, the following entrepreneurs were awarded the ten grants of £10,000 made available by NatWest. 

Rebecca is an artist living in North Yorkshire running a pottery studio with courses, workshops, and community events that inspire and promote creativity.

She said, “I am absolutely over the moon to get this life changing grant. This money will allow me to move my business to the next level. I will be able to purchase equipment for my studio, gain vital training to enhance my own skills.”

“Crucially I will be able to open a physical studio that will enable me to hold more workshops and pottery courses. Without this grant and the belief I would not have been able to take this major step in my small business.”

Bantu Chocolate is a bean-to-bar craft chocolate and cocoa pulp juice maker in the UK specialising in single origin slave-free cocoa products. Bantu is dedicated to turning a broken system into a fair, sustainable, and modern supply chain.

“This grant presents a valuable opportunity for innovation and growth, reinforcing our dedication to sustainability and contributing to the resilience of the UK’s economy.”

“Receiving this grant is a significant milestone for Bantu Chocolate. It will enable us to strengthen our online presence, enhance our product offerings, and support our commitment to sustainability through the pillars of planet, profit, and people—particularly the often-overlooked aspect of people.”

4Motion is a community interest company based in Cornwall. It is on a social mission to make a positive impact on people and the planet by helping communities stay moving, connected and nourished through plant-based food projects.

“Receiving the NatWest Hatch grant has had a hugely positive impact on our community. We have a bold vision, backed with ambitious plans to deliver accessible training, workshops and events focusing on plant-based food, social connections and inclusive movement experiences.

“This grant will enable us to bring these plans to life and ultimately make positive impacts on the health and wellbeing of the young people, families and communities we work with. We can’t wait to co-create this project with our local community, so watch this space for positive, impactful experiences coming your way!”

 Emotion Dysregulation in Autism (EDA) is on a mission to improve recovery outcomes, patient experience, and feelings of empowerment for autistic children and young people who need psychiatric inpatient services. It provides peer support, training and social action in the Birmingham area.

“The Hatch grant will empower me as a founder, enabling me to have coaching support for myself to be the catalyst for change I need to lead my organisation.”

Give Your Best is an award-winning ‘tech for good’ social enterprise offering the first circular platform of its kind where people and brands donate clothes online, so communities living in clothing poverty can shop for free with the agency and dignity they deserve. It is turning donating into gifting, empowering through choice.

“This grant will further our mission to tackle clothing waste and poverty by supporting the expansion of our Business Besties partnership programme, particularly through our Bestie Bins initiative.

“These clothing donation collection boxes can be hired by businesses and brands to promote circularity and ethical donation practices both in-house and in-store, for their staff and customers.”

Good Things is a champion for choices that make a positive difference to people and the planet. It seeks out inspiring ethical and sustainable gifts that support charities, empower people and protect our planet, making it easy for consumers to find them.

“This grant gives me the opportunity to take Good Things to the next level. With this funding I will be investing in a shop space, and developing new gift lines which is really exciting. 

“We’ve just had our busiest year yet, and with this grant I can’t wait to build on this growth and momentum, championing more gifts with positive impact.”

The Refillery is a plastic free and ethical goods store in Edinburgh on a mission to bring plastic free shopping to as many people as possible.

“We are delighted to be reaching out to more people in the Edinburgh area to bring liquid refills to their doorstep. This is a major step forward for us in eliminating even more needless plastic from the system. It’s been a challenging few years for ethical, independent businesses like ours.

“The NatWest grant will help us to launch this much quicker than anticipated, adding much needed additional revenue which will ensure a sustainable future for The Refillery.”

More Than Flags and Rainbows is a not-for-profit organisation which aims to make all schools and colleges more inclusive spaces through LGBTQ+ inclusion and Relationships and Sexuality Education. It has experience working with schools across the UK and has delivered in-person and online training to thousands of teachers.

“I am absolutely thrilled to receive the Hatch Grant to develop our online training platform, which will support schools across the UK to become more inclusive.”

“Hatch has transformed my own business knowledge and through the various programmes, has exponentially developed my confidence. Thanks to all at Hatch.”

Yoga designed by Disabled people for everyone. Accessible and inclusive yoga classes that cater to any mobility level – empowering everyBODY to experience the benefits of yoga.

“Without the £10,000 grant from NatWest, I wouldn’t have been able to participate in the Knowledge Transfer Partnership with South Bank University. This collaboration provides the expertise and innovation needed to develop a high-quality preventive healthcare app.

“NatWest’s financial support ensures the app is tailored to the needs of Disabled users and effectively marketed to reach a broad audience, driving our mission to make adaptive yoga accessible to all.”

Frogley Fibre provides high-quality fibre for broom and brush making to the UK craft sector. The business caters to a diverse customer base including brush and broom makers, artists, ceramicists, and small businesses, offering accessible quantities of fibre that are typically only available in bulk.

“Being awarded the Natwest 10×10 grant will enable Frogley Fibre to launch our plan for expansion two years ahead of organic growth.

“This grant will allow us to add to our team enabling us to focus on providing well designed and unique new products without impacting the quality fibre and customer service we are proud of. Growth is always exciting and with the support of the NatWest 10×10 grant we can enjoy the journey.”

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