Lifted Ventures and the British Business Bank extend partnership to strengthen diversity among UK angel investors and accelerate support for female founders.

Lifted Ventures announces a one-year extension of its partnership with the British Business Bank, reinforcing a shared commitment to building a more diverse and inclusive angel investment ecosystem across the UK.

The continued collaboration will further scale the Lifted Ventures Angel Network, increasing regional investment capacity and accelerating the activation of women angel investors nationwide. The partnership is designed to broaden participation in early-stage investment and ensure greater access to capital for female founders across all UK regions.

Building on the success of the initial partnership, both organisations will deepen their focus on addressing long-standing gaps in the early-stage funding landscape particularly the underrepresentation of women as both investors and recipients of angel capital.

Only around 14% of UK angel investors are women, yet evidence shows that more diverse investor groups are significantly more likely to deploy capital into female-founded businesses, helping to improve access to funding for underrepresented entrepreneurs.

Through this renewed partnership, Lifted Ventures and the British Business Bank aim to catalyse a new wave of angel investors particularly women while strengthening regional ecosystems and widening participation beyond traditional investment hubs.

A key priority of the collaboration will be continued regional activation, ensuring that aspiring investors and founders outside major financial centres have access to the networks, education, and opportunities needed to participate in the angel investment economy.

Increasing diversity within angel investment is critical to unlocking early-stage capital for female-led businesses. Angel funding is often the first external investment founders receive, enabling them to validate ideas, build traction, and become venture-ready. Limited access at this stage continues to constrain the progression of many high-potential female founders into later-stage funding rounds.

Lifted Ventures will continue to deliver structured education and investment facilitation programmes, enabling new angel investors to deploy capital with confidence. In combination with the British Business Bank’s broader market development mandate, the partnership aims to support more inclusive and geographically balanced flows of early-stage investment.

Susan Nightingale, British Business Bank, said: “Supporting a more diverse and dynamic angel market is central to our mission of improving access to finance for growing businesses.  Through our continued partnership with Lifted Ventures, we can support innovative ways to bring new investors into the ecosystem and expand opportunities for female founders across the UK.”

Jordan Dargue, Co-Founder of Lifted Ventures, added: “Extending our partnership with the British Business Bank is a powerful signal of what sustained collaboration can achieve. We’ve seen a strong appetite for angel investing among women across the regions, and this next phase allows us to build on that momentum, ensuring more capital, confidence and capability flows into the places and founders who need it most.” 

Vicky Mears, British Business Bank, said: “Building stronger regional angel investment capacity is central to developing more connected and resilient ecosystems across the UK. By deepening the alignment between investors, local networks, and regional growth ambitions, we can help ensure that promising founders wherever they are based are better able to access the capital and support they need to grow and scale.” 

Helen Oldham, Co-Founder Lifted Ventures, added: “This partnership is about systemic change. By activating more women as angel investors and strengthening regional networks, we are helping to create a more inclusive investment landscape that better reflects the full breadth of entrepreneurial talent in the UK. We are delighted to be partnering with The British Business Bank again.”

As the UK continues to position itself as a global leader in innovation, initiatives such as this partnership play a vital role in ensuring growth is both inclusive and sustainable.