New initiative aims to boost female entrepreneurship in West Midlands

Tamlyn Jones

16 May 2024 at 10:45 am·2-min read

A new initiative has been launched which is aiming to make high-growth entrepreneurship more accessible to women outside of London and the South East.

Called The Lifted Project, it was established as a result of a recommendation from a new government taskforce established to boost private investment in women-led businesses across the UK.

A new board has been established to spearhead the initiative in Birmingham, along with boards for four other cities, with the aim of increasing the number of female-founded high-growth enterprises by 50 per cent within three years.

The new Birmingham board is being jointly chaired by Tara Attfield-Tomes, who founded Birmingham PR Agency East Village, and Hephzi Pemberton who runs London-based data firm Honordex.

Ms Attfield-Tomes also set up The 51% Club, a community to help female founders grow their businesses via events and better access to resources, and is chairwoman of TechWM's Women in Tech Special Interest Group.

A roundtable event will also be hosted in June by the new Birmingham board which aims to bring together founders, investors and regional stakeholders to discuss the imbalance in the West Midlands and how The Lifted Project can provide female founders with better pathways of support.

Ms Attfield-Tomes said: "While Birmingham has a well-connected ecosystem for early-stage entrepreneurs, we're still missing the co-ordination and influence needed to really create change for female founders who want to scale.

"This lack of focus, and funding, means that incredible women-led businesses are either leaving the region or, worse than that, not reaching their potential.

"We have to make some radical changes to the funding landscape - not just providing better access but also ensuring that more women hold the purse strings on investment boards and as angel investors. I am truly honoured to be co-chairing The Lifted Project alongside Hephzi.

"This strategic board has some ambitious goals and I am determined to change the world for female founders."

The Lifted Project is supported by Lloyds Bank and led by Lifted Ventures which works to increase the flow of early-stage capital to female founders and promote the business benefits of backing women.

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