Challenge Partners is delighted to announce that we are one of three charities invited to join the Permira Foundation’s first Growth Fund, which will provide four-year, unrestricted significant funding commitments, alongside specialist pro bono support from Permira employees worldwide.
Permira and Challenge Partners have a decade-long, highly effective partnership, which has seen us grow to benefit over a quarter of a million pupils more annually since 2014. We’ve benefited from the expertise of Permirans across a range of projects including digital transformation, impact evaluation, fundraising and growth strategies. The pro bono expertise and grant funding has supported us to scale our operations, build resilience and, most importantly, impact.
The Growth Fund marks an exciting next chapter, enabling us to deepen and extend our impact so that by 2030 we are supporting half a million pupils each year, including at least 200,000 from disadvantaged families. It provides an exciting opportunity to augment this mutually-enriching partnership to create systemic, measurable and enduring value for our schools, trusts and the pupils they serve.
We are confident that the Growth Fund will catalyse Challenge Partners’ next phase of growth and innovation, including building our capacity to reach high-need schools and regions, deeper strategic influence on policy, and transformation in digital and operational capabilities.
We are extremely grateful to the Permira Foundation for their continued belief in our work and their commitment to creating lasting change for children and communities across the country.
Katie Rose, Executive Director of Permira Foundation, shared:
“Challenge Partners has been a valued partner of the Permira Foundation for over a decade, and we have seen first-hand the scale and quality of their impact on schools, teachers and pupils. Through the Growth Fund, we are proud to deepen our partnership by providing long-term, flexible funding alongside our employees’ pro bono expertise, enabling Challenge Partners to plan ambitiously and invest in sustainable growth. We are thrilled to be collaborating with Kate and her team through this next phase of their journey as they work towards creating lasting change for students across the country.”
Dr Kate Chhatwal OBE, CEO of Challenge Partners said:
“We are thrilled to join the inaugural cohort of the Permira Growth Fund. Their generous grant and pro bono support will accelerate Challenge Partners’ mission to ensure every child receives an excellent education, driving measurable improvements in school and student performance at scale.
Our decade-long partnership has already more than doubled our reach, and the Growth Fund will take our impact to the next level, helping us enhance the life chances of half a million pupils annually by 2030, including at least 200,000 from disadvantaged communities.”
Challenge Partners welcomes conversations with other organisations and individuals interested in supporting our proven approaches to improving education to create lasting impact for children and communities. Contact alice.malivoire@challengepartners.org to find out more.