Current Work Overview
EIIP is currently working across a number of areas to advance the field of equality impact investing. Read about our main programme areas and current projects below.
Our current priorities
Our overarching priority right now is to support and promote the use of EII by social impact investors in addressing a range of inequality challenges both in the UK and globally. We are advancing this through our core programme areas and priority projects, working in collaboration with a range of partners.
Credit: Matthew Maillet
Project highlight: Equalising Deal Terms
The Equalising Deal Terms (EDT) project is an initiative facilitated by the Equality Impact Investing Project and co-led by Sung-Hyui Park of Bates Wells and Rana Zincir Celal of EIIP, to address power imbalances between impact investors and their investees arising from current practices relating to investment terms, legal documents and processes.
CORE programme: uk taskforce
Convened by the EIIP, the UK Taskforce is a platform for key investment and equality players to share and collaborate on taking the EII agenda forward, both individually and collectively. Members have been pioneering new approaches to assessing and proactively increasing their equality impact. These are profiled on our website.
Credit: Matthew Maillet
Core programme: capacity building
We provide training, advice, support and resources to build the capacity of social impact investors to apply EII principles and strategies. We launched our first EII training programme for social impact investors in March 2021 and this website acts as a resource for the growing EII community. We are also working to develop the wider infrastructure needed to build and embed EII in the long term, including in EIIP itself.
Core programme: measuring impact
EIIP is exploring how to bring greater alignment between key impact frameworks used across the equality and social investment sectors. Existing frameworks (for example those used by EHRC, Oxfam/LSE, Big Society Capital and the Impact Management Project) provide a strong basis for complementary impact goal setting, convergence of measurement frameworks and joint work to build equality-focused social investment and venturing.
Credit: Markus Spiske
Core programme: policy alignment
EIIP is working to strengthen the policy context for EII. We do this through bridging the gap between equality and social impact investment policy frameworks. In March 2021, we are holding a strategic Convening to explore how EII can advance the UK’s Levelling Up agenda.
Credit: Falk Heger
Core programme: Developing Professional Standards
EIIP is exploring equalities competencies and standards for social investors, alongside identifying what further provision is needed to build current capacity and a future pipeline. We are assessing learning and other professional development options that can ensure that funds are led and managed by people with a robust grasp of equalities competencies. This work will engage relevant academic bodies and training providers and link to the Impact Investing Institute’s learning framework.