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Investing in women

See how we’re supporting female founders and business leaders, with growth capital and support

We’ve committed at least £300 million to the Invest in Women Taskforce funding pot, to support female-powered scaleup businesses, over the next five years. Read on to learn more about our offering, and the community we’re building for women in entrepreneurship and on boards.

How we're different

We’re not like traditional private equity or venture capital funds. We provide:

  • Minority equity investment (or a mix of equity and debt), without taking control
  • Patient capital, with exit timeframes that are intended to maximise valuation and outcome for all shareholders
  • Access to our networks and resources, as well as follow-on funding for new opportunities
  • Value creation support in scaling your business, with experience across a wide range of growth strategies

And we’re committed to backing ambitious businesses, powered by women, up and down the country.

BGF Investor & Head of Origination, Gemma Hamilton, presenting at our 2025 WEB Forum

Our funding criteria

We invest in ambitious businesses, headquartered in the UK or Ireland. We look for private SMEs that match this profile:

  • Turnover of £2m+ and profitable
  • Strong track record and growth strategy
  • Seeking initial investment of £3m-£30m
  • Not a startup or seeking seed capital

Or early-stage businesses that are:

  • Operating in the life sciences or deep tech sectors
  • IP-protected
  • Seeking initial investment of £3m-£10m
Mixed-gender leadership team of BGF-backed life sciences startup TidalSense

Additional resources

If you don’t meet our investment criteria, there are other funding sources available that you may be eligible to access. The below resources may be helpful:

In the process of scaling-up? Keep in touch with our team by signing up to the BGF Newsletter, or explore our latest Insights and The Good Growth Podcast, for helpful guidance on expanding your business – plus success stories from fellow founders.

Maya Moufarek on set of The Good Growth Podcast

Women on boards

As part of our commitment to backing female entrepreneurship, we’re working hard to increase the number of female non-execs on the boards of our portfolio companies. Introducing companies to non-execs in our Talent Network — the largest group of business leaders dedicated to entrepreneurial growth in the UK and Ireland — is a central part of our value creation offering.

Experienced non-exec Sharon Baylay-Bell, part of the BGF Talent Network

A community built for you

At our recent Women in Entrepreneurship & on Boards (WEB) Forum, we heard from lots of attendees that shared a common challenge: finding a community of like-minded female entrepreneurs, business leaders, and non-execs to connect with and learn from. So now, we’re helping to build one. Keep an eye out for our next WEB event and apply to join the group below!

Women from the BGF WEB community networking at our recent event
  • “BGF offered us the perfect combination of patient capital, insight, and support.”

    Vikki Jackson-Smith, Founder of J&B Recycling
  • “BGF helped us to create significant value in the business, through our expansion and around succession planning.”

    Maria Sarkar, Co-Founder of DriveWorks
  • “I can’t speak highly enough of BGF. At every stage, they were supportive and enthusiastic for our plans.”

    Amanda Torrens, Founder of Brindley Healthcare
  • “BGF is great to work with – responsive, flexible and supportive.”

    Fiona Lowry, Founder of The Good Care Group

Success stories

Hear how female-powered businesses across the UK have used growth capital and support from BGF to realise their potential.

Meet the team

We’re proud to have a close to 50:50 gender split across the business, including more than 40 women in our Investment, Portfolio and Value Creation teams.

See our full team here
  • Gemma Hamilton
    Growth
    LinkedIn
    Gemma Hamilton

    Investor, Head of Origination

  • Linda Nguyenova
    Growth
    LinkedIn
    Linda Nguyenova

    Investor

  • Sophie Birch
    Value Creation
    LinkedIn
    Sophie Birch

    Talent Network

  • Courtney Walker
    Growth
    LinkedIn
    Courtney Walker

    Investor

  • Sofia Paci
    Growth
    LinkedIn
    Sofia Paci

    Investor

  • Mo Alexander
    Value Creation
    LinkedIn
    Mo Alexander

    Talent Network

  • Georgie Stratton
    Growth
    LinkedIn
    Georgie Stratton

    Investor

  • Aoife McAdam
    Growth
    LinkedIn
    Aoife McAdam

    Investor

  • Sophie Day
    Infrastructure
    LinkedIn
    Sophie Day

    Head of Community Marketing