Pathways to Funding
What we offer
Open to businesses and socially trading enterprises operating across Newcastle, Northumberland and North Tyneside, Pathways to Funding is improving how regional businesses can secure investment through specialist investor readiness support and by building a comprehensive Investor Hub for the North.
For business leaders at a pivotal juncture, whether preparing for your first equity raise or navigating the complexities of a second, Pathways to Funding offers a curated support framework designed to elevate your investment readiness and accelerate your growth.
Events and Workshops
We run a series of free events and workshops all year round. You'll gain expert guidance on the funding options available and learn how to become investor ready with high impact sessions, from strategic Q&A's to pitch refinement workshops.
One-to-One Support
Our Innovation Finance specialists offer support to businesses at all stages of growth, whether you're just beginning your journey or are ready to grow and expand, we can help.
Investment Readiness Levels
We have developed our own Investment Readiness Levels: an invaluable method to help businesses understand how financially competent they are, how robust their investment opportunity is, and what steps they need to take to ensure success.
Investor Intelligence
Engage with specialist advisors who bring expertise in early-stage and growth capital, helping you align your proposition with investor expectations.
Who should apply?
Leaders of revenue generating SMEs and Innovation Driven Enterprises requiring external finance.
Founders preparing for equity investment, seeking clarity, credibility, and strategic positioning.
Entrepreneurs ready to scale with smart capital and long-term partners
Businesses and socially trading enterprises headquartered in Newcastle, Northumberland or North Tyneside
Northern Investor Hub
Working closely with local and national partners, the Northern Investor Hub brings experienced and budding investors together, identifying co-investment opportunities, and showcasing the North’s most inspiring businesses.
If you are an investor find out more here about the opportunities we can provide for you. If you a business, when you are ready we will invite you to present your business at a pitching event in front of our investor network.
Michelle Hambleton
Programme Manager
Phil Sly
Specialist Adviser
Jonpaul Heron
Specialist Adviser
Gillian Fricker
Specialist Adviser
What are the investment readiness levels?
The team bring with them decades of experience in helping businesses access finance. Drawing on this knowledge and understanding of what investors are looking for, we have developed our own Investment Readiness Levels.
The Investment Readiness Levels (IRLs) take a leaf from the engineering playbook, notably the Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) widely recognised and used in technical and engineering fields. This inspiration leads to an approach, mirroring the meticulous and systematic progression seen in engineering projects.
In engineering, the TRLs serve as a scale to assess the maturity level of a particular technology; similarly, the IRLs apply this concept to business development, providing a structured and quantifiable measure of a business’s readiness for investment.
The benefits of this approach are multifaceted: it brings a high degree of rigor and clarity to the business development process, allowing entrepreneurs to assess their progress objectively. It also facilitates communication with potential investors, who are often familiar with the TRL framework and appreciate a similar level of precision and detail in business proposals.
Our 9 Investment Readiness Levels (IRLs), guide businesses from Business Formulation, through Market Validation, Financial Forecasting, to the development of a robust and defensible business plan and succinct investment pitch.
Facilitate communications with potential investors (who often already recognise the TRL framework).
Bring a high degree of rigor and clarity to the business development process.
Encourage entrepreneurs to assess their progress objectively.
Make sure businesses are accessing the right support and guidance for where they are in their journey.
Help businesses methodically and strategically prepare for investment.
Significantly improve the prospects of a business in the competitive investment landscape.
