who we are

about us
For over 17 years, Social Tech Trust has been redefining how technology serves society. We back ventures not just with funding, but with frameworks that centre equity, inclusion, and long-term impact.
From financial resilience to health equity and climate justice, we work across sectors where innovation can challenge the status quo. Our approach blends capital with care, offering challenge prizes, tailored programmes, and collaborative support that reflect the lived experiences of diverse founders.
leadership
Our core team is supported by a highly experienced Board of Trustees and a wide network of associates and subject-matter experts across impact, investment and innovation. Together, we bring deep insight, diverse perspectives and strong connections across the UK’s evolving impact ecosystem, helping founders navigate the challenges of building an impact tech venture and achieve sustainable growth.
our Principles
Vision
We envision a world where social transformation drives technology towards a more equitable future.
Values
Our values define who we are and guide everything we do.
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We are inclusive: committed to ensuring everyone has an equal opportunity to shape, develop and benefit from technology.
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We are collaborative: bringing people and organisations together to drive meaningful transformation.
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We are outcome-driven: focused on identifying and supporting people-led solutions to social and environmental challenges.
Embedding equity in our approach
Equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) are essential to our vision of a world where social transformation drives technology. When shaped by diverse voices and lived experience, technology becomes a powerful force for change — which is why EDI is embedded in everything we do. We grow a portfolio of ventures whose core mission is to advance equity and social justice. We design investment and support that responds to the needs of underrepresented founders. And we collaborate with others to challenge bias, share learning and strengthen inclusive practice across the wider ecosystem.
Our CEO, Ed, leads Social Tech Trust and Social Tech Ventures with a focus on building an inclusive impact ecosystem where socially driven tech ventures can thrive. With a background in social investment and innovative finance, he brings deep expertise in scaling ventures that tackle complex social challenges.
Rob - Chair of Trustees, Managing Director at Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation - leads efforts to identify new investment opportunities as Managing Director at Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation. His extensive experience in investment research and business policy complements his role as Chair of Social Tech Trust, where he champions tech ventures focused on driving social transformation.
Russell - Vice Chair of Trustees, former General Counsel at EE - brings extensive legal expertise from his role leading the legal and compliance team for BT’s Consumer division (BT, EE, and Plusnet). With a career spanning the media, communications, and technology sectors, his experience includes advising high-profile clients in the UK and internationally.
Maria - Trustee, Head of Innovation and Sustainability at Aerospace Technology Institute - is an expert in advancing tech innovation and sustainability. She has honed her ability to drive impactful tech development across various sectors. As a board member at Social Tech Trust, Maria applies her strategic insights to support social tech ventures, aligning with our mission to foster tech-driven social transformation.
Mehjabeen - Trustee, Director of Finance at Arts University Bournemouth - is a seasoned executive with over 25 years of experience in finance and investment. She has a wealth of expertise that spans both public and private sectors, including work with the UN and European Commission. This makes her instrumental in driving Social Tech Trust’s mission to foster innovation and social impact through technology.
Nick - Trustee, Chief Executive at Social Investment Business and previously Deputy CEO at Social Enterprise UK - is pivotal in driving social investment and innovation. He also serves on key advisory boards, including the Impact Investing Institute, using his expertise to help guide strategic investments.
Nick - Trustee, Founder and CEO at OceanMind - is an award-winning entrepreneur using advanced technology to address global challenges like ocean health, greenhouse gas emissions, and corporate sustainability. Nick leverages his expertise in tech-driven sustainability to support the ventures we work with to drive social and environmental impact through transformative tech innovation.
Sunil - Trustee, Director at Reel Cinemas - has extensive knowledge of the early-stage social venture landscape in the UK. He is a Director at REEL Cinemas and co-founder of Greenworkx, an edtech venture addressing the green skills emergency. His experience in both entrepreneurship and non-profit governance helps drive our mission to support impact tech ventures.