We are finalists!
We're all about seeing lives transformed through employment
The Grace Enterprises story dates back to 2007, when our founder Matt Parfitt felt called to leave his job as a primary school teacher to become an employer of people with major barriers to work. Matt began by running a gardening business founded on inclusive hiring practices, with some wonderful positive impact stories. But the vision was always bigger than one single business, so Grace Enterprises was started in 2017 in partnership with Grace Church Nottingham, with the aim of multiplying opportunities for sustainable job creation. The first social enterprise we launched was Radiant Cleaners, a commercial cleaning company which quickly gained national recognition for its pioneering social impact.
Different ethical businesses, new jobs created
We knew from the start that although cleaning is the perfect route into employment for some, it is not the answer for everyone. That's why we've built on our foundation of holistic employee support and launched two more social enterprises: Jubilee Events and Half the Story. The ethos is the same across our businesses, but the variety of job roles means we can offer employment to people who have experienced different barriers to work. Whether that is working in a field as part of the marquee building team or packing biscuits in the safety of our bakery, we want all our team to have a rewarding job that is suited to them.
Growing and influencing to see more social impact
With three sustainable social enterprises up and running in Nottingham and over 100 people employed to date, we've got big plans for the future:
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We want to see our current businesses continue to grow, with greater national impact
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We want to start more social enterprises, and create jobs for over 1000 people
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We want to influence the wider conversation around social enterprise, CSR, and inclusive hiring
If you'd like to join us on the adventure and see how you can be involved, go to our Support Us page.
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