On Monday 11th November, community and voluntary sector leaders, funders, and key stakeholders gathered at JPMorganChase in London for the final event of the Pathways 2 Economic Opportunities (P2E) programme.
This three-year, £2 million P2E Programme was funded by JPMorganChase through the London Community Foundation (LCF) since November 2020 and delivered by partners, Action for Race Equality and The Ubele Initiative.
It supported Black and Minority ethnic-led ‘by and for’ organisations currently providing employment, enterprise and financial health (EEFH) support in London.1
Impact of organisational development: reflections
Monday’s celebration event was a chance to look back at the programme’s impact on 19 Black and Minority-led organisations who received a combination of funding and organisational development support (through workshops, peer-learning activities, and bespoke consultancy) over the latter two years (or phases) of the programme.2
Speakers included: Harbi Jama, Director of Development and Communications, The London Community Foundation; Colleen Ebbitt, Vice President, Programme officer for J.P Morgan Global Philanthropy; Megan Wong, P2E Programme Lead at ARE; and Karl Murray, The Ubele Initiative, who all spoke of the power of community-led solutions to support financial growth and economic development across London’s Black and Minority-ethnic communities.
A key element of the afternoon, which brought funders, Black and Minority-led organisations, and other community stakeholders into the room, was a panel discussion entitled ‘Impact on the frontline: insights, learnings and reflections from the cohort’, between programme participants Kofi Oppong, Founder of Urban MBA; Farah Mohammed, Founder of You Press; and ARE Associate and Founder of ThinkFirst Comms, Alex Louis who worked with many of the groups on the programme through 1:1 consultancy.
The panel spoke of the immediate impact of the organisational development they received post-Covid, sharing case studies and stories from their beneficiaries, and left a final message to funders to create more sustainable funder-models, and support long-term growth and partnerships in the future.
My consultant, Tutu, understood my needs right away, creating a space where our conversations felt genuine. She encouraged me to articulate my thoughts clearly, making each session impactful and tailored to my goals. Ethnically and diverse consultants makes a big difference and I was able to open up a curiosity that I didn’t know was there and I’m looking to explore that going forward.”
Farah Mohammed, You Press
Out now – Phase 3 report: recommendations for funders and organisations
ARE also shared, for the very first time, findings from our new publication, Phase 3 report: Reflections and Learnings from the Organisational Development Programme of Support.
Our final report outlines the P2E Programme’s key successes and learnings, with the aim of shaping future programmes/funders who wish to centre racial equity in economic development and financial resilience.
One of the key recommendations from the report is the need for tailored, culturally competent support that reflects the unique challenges faced by Black and Minority-led organisations.
ARE’s Megan Wong reflected on the Programme’s impact and report’s findings including messages to other Black and Minoritised ‘by and for’ organisations, and to funders:
The P2E programme recognises that organisational development cannot be achieved through a one-size-fits-all approach. For Black and Minority ethnic-led EEFH organisations to build their organisational infrastructure and leadership, programmes such as these must recognise that Black and Minority ethnic communities are best placed to lead on the solutions to their development.
Our journey together over the past two years has highlighted the importance of collaboration, and the need for spaces to share our challenges, best practice and to find support within and between organisations.”
– Megan Wong, P2E Grants and Programme Lead
As the event concluded, attendees were encouraged to continue the momentum built by the P2E programme, and keep on holding open dialogue with funders and other infrastructure organisations like Action for Race Equality.
We would like to thank JPMorganChase, the London Community Foundation and the Ubele Initiative for providing this opportunity to strengthen the Black and Minority-led sector in London. ARE is committed to continue working with the capital’s diverse leaders to support meaningful economic empowerment across our communities.
The Phase 3 report offers a comprehensive view of the lessons learned over the past two years and serves as a guide for future programmes seeking to address racial and economic inequalities.
- The programme aimed to demonstrate the importance of community and infrastructure organisations in addressing inequalities, creating new opportunities post-COVID and helping to remove barriers to economic opportunity in London. Crucially, through a co-design approach in Phase I, P2E provided a platform for participating organisations to share expertise, insights and learning and create a shared vision for the programme that reimagined the balance of power between funders and Black and minority-led organisations. ↩︎
- The full list of organisations taking part in P2E were: Account3; Advice Support Knowledge Information; Aishah Help; Anti-Tribalism Movement; Elevating Success UK; Golden Opportunity Skills and Development; Iconic Steps Film Academy CIC; Money A+E UK CIC; Newark Youth London; Olmec; Plias Resettlement Ltd; Positive Employment Job Brokerage; Skills & Training Network Limited; Skills Enterprise; The Bangladesh Youth Movement; Urban MBA; You Press; Youth and Community Connections; Youth League UK (YL) ↩︎
Download the Phase 3 report: Reflections and learnings from the Organisational Development Programme of Support