Kick-start your social venture at Social Venture Weekend
The Social Venture Weekend at Cambridge Judge Business School is for anyone with an ambition to set up or grow a business that makes a positive social or environmental impact.
The workshop is an inspiring introduction to the social venture sector and a valuable opportunity to focus intensely on your own business. In an inclusive, supportive and friendly atmosphere, you’ll have the opportunity to share and test your ideas with others and learn from the experience of successful social entrepreneurs.
- For emerging social entrepreneurs, it’s a chance to explore new ideas and get started on your new business.
- For established social ventures, you will be able to refine your business plan and cement your understanding of business fundamentals to help your business thrive.
What does the weekend cover?
Our training helps emerging social entrepreneurs explore new ideas and supports established social ventures to refine their thinking. Unlike other entrepreneurial training, ours is from a social perspective, with a strong focus on social impact within the context of creating and scaling a sustainable business.
Over the weekend, faculty from Cambridge Judge Business School and other world-class experts in social enterprise will cover:
- business planning
- market research
- legal structures
- finance
- pitching
You’ll discuss your ideas with mentors and fellow entrepreneurs, developing the story and business model around your venture. The Sunday afternoon culminates with an informal pitch and a discussion about your next steps.
Who is the weekend for?
The course is for anyone with an ambition to start or grow a social venture. We welcome any business working to make positive social or environmental impact across all sectors, from employment to genomics, ageing to energy.
Social Venture Weekend is for you if:
- you are starting, or already running, a business dedicated to making social impact
- you’re ambitious to scale up rapidly, become investment ready, and secure finance
There are no prerequisites for attendees and we do not assess you – we are here to encourage and support you. Attendees only need:
- a business idea for a new or growing venture to explore through the workshops
- a strong social mission at the core of your work
- a willingness to share and discuss your ideas with mentors and fellow entrepreneurs
If you’re unsure whether or not to apply, please feel free to get in touch to discuss your ideas.
The practicalities
Location
The weekend is hosted by Cambridge Judge Business School on Trumpington St in central Cambridge.
Cost
The fee for the weekend is £75. A co-founder or team member can join you for a further £75.
If the cost will prevent you from attending, please do talk to us. Concessions are available for people who are experiencing long term financial hardship, particularly from the East of England.
Schedule
Each weekend workshop runs to the following schedule.
- Friday: 13:30 to 18:00, with a light supper and drinks to follow
- Saturday: 9:00 to 17:30
- Sunday: 9:30 to 16:00
Meals
We provide lunch, tea and coffee, and on the Friday night we put on a light supper and drinks to give you a chance to meet the mentors and the other attendees.
Dietary requirements are catered for - please make sure you inform us when you book your ticket.
Travel
Those travelling from outside Cambridge will need to arrange their own travel.
Find out more about travel directions to the School, including parking advice
There is no parking available at the venue, and parking around Cambridge city centre can be difficult and expensive.
Park and ride services run from five locations around the city. Visit the Park & Ride website
Parkopedia can suggest nearby parking. Visit the Parkopedia web app
Accommodation
Those travelling from outside Cambridge will need to arrange their own accommodation.
We recommend staying within Cambridge city, as bus services from the surrounding villages can be unreliable and infrequent. Alternatively, Cambridge is well served by train from London and other nearby large cities. Towns and villages on these train routes could be a good option.
Find out more about local accommodation options at:
We are aware that as emerging social ventures, many of us are cost-conscious! We are keeping an eye out for good budget options and will share these here. Unfortunately as our events are during University term time, student accommodation is limited.
Accessibility
Please let us know if you have any accessibility or learning support needs. We are very willing to make adaptations to our programme to enable you to participate.
If you have limited mobility, please let us know so that we can ensure your safety in case of fire.
Our venue (Cambridge Judge Business School) also has a number of accessibility features to improve access, particularly for people with mobility, hearing and visual impairments. We also have quiet spaces which can be used by anyone, for example people with fatigue conditions, nursing mums and neurodiverse people.
