Ufi Ventures

Ufi Ventures is the United Kingdom's specialist early-stage investor in vocational technology (VocTech), digital tools that help adults gain the skills they need for work and help businesses improve performance by developing their workforce. It is the investment arm of Ufi VocTech Trust, a London-based charity dedicated to unlocking vocational learning with technology, and it has been investing since 2019. Distinctively, Ufi Ventures invests its own capital rather than that of external limited partners, allowing it to focus entirely on social impact alongside commercial sustainability. The fund draws on deep sector expertise and a network of educators, developers, employers, investors and policymakers to support portfolio companies, typically writing early-stage cheques of roughly £250k to £1m, historically from £75k, generally as a co-investor, backing companies that get adults learning and progressing in work, with an ambition to build a portfolio of around 20 active businesses. In November 2024 it launched a second vehicle, the Ufi Ventures Challenge Fund, aimed at early-stage companies using vocational technology to make a scalable impact on skills development for the transitioning economy. The team is led by Director of Ventures Helen Gironi, a long-time early-stage and impact investor formerly of Nesta Impact Investments, supported by an associate director, investment associate and venture partners. To date Ufi Ventures has made around 26 investments, with portfolio companies including CertChain, Gladys, Assemble You, Purlos and Learnerbly, and it co-publishes quarterly VocTech Market Reports with Tyton Partners. By investing its own charitable capital, Ufi Ventures backs the technologies that build the adult workforce's skills.