We're so grateful to Social Business Wales for their help over the past 8 months. Their guidance and knowledge has been invaluable. We're looking forward to their continued support and we'd certainly recommend them to other startup businesses. We're pleased to share the following case study of their work with Physical Empowerment below. Don't miss the video too!
PHYSICAL EMPOWERMENT CASE STUDY
Over the past eight months, Social Business Wales has been supporting Physical Empowerment, a community interest company which offers free emotional, physical and mental self-defence training that helps attendees overcome the trauma of domestic violence.
David Brooks, one of our Business Consultants, has worked closely with Philippa Scannell, Physical Empowerment’s Founder and CEO, to provide policy and recruitment advice as well as other social business support.
ABOUT PHYSICAL EMPOWERMENT
Philippa trained in a variety of martial art and self-defence disciplines and found many women came to her for support and guidance. As a result, Physical Empowerment was founded. Philippa elaborates: “I wanted to help women live without fear through the medium of self-defence because I knew it had worked for me, but it took me years of training to find the system that helped me to free my body from past memories. I wanted to provide this freedom for other women in an approachable format. Self-defence is physical, emotional, and mental and when those three factors work together, changes happen. There are a lot of courses out there that focus on the mental and emotional but forget about the physical element.”
Based in Port Talbot, Physical Empowerment has had a profound impact on the communities it has reached. David explains: “Philippa and Physical Empowerment have had a massively beneficial impact on their service users’ lives as well as their confidence and self-esteem. And over time as the business grows, it will be able to support even more people.”
OUR WORK WITH PHYSICAL EMPOWERMENT
As a social business with aspirations of reaching national service users, Philippa knew it was important to secure her current position ready for Physical Empowerment’s next big step. Philippa was introduced to David at a local funding fair in Sandfields, Port Talbot, which he attends annually; there, David explained to Philippa the advice and support Social Business Wales could provide her with to grow her business.
Firstly, Philippa was ready to hire her first employee. David elaborates: “Philippa was at the point where she was ready to employ staff and not solely rely on volunteers. So, I sent her a draft employment contract and employee handbook which she could tailor to
the role, meaning she was equipped with the essentials to employ someone for
the first time.”
Through regular catch-ups, David was also able to provide Philippa with a business plan drafted by one of our consultants thanks to some funding. Philippa says: “Having a solid business plan in place is really helpful as we move forward and grow the organisation, which includes applying for further funding opportunities.”
David has also facilitated other forms of support and guidance, such as director training, business mentoring and funding ideas.
IMPACT
Through accessing these services with Social Business Wales, Philippa has gained confidence in running her social enterprise knowing she can simply email or call for advice whenever she needs it: “There are so many elements to running a business that are much less daunting now, and that is all because of David and the advice and support I’ve received from Social Business Wales.”
THE FUTURE
With a strong business plan in place, director training and all the relevant policies a thriving organisation could need, Philippa can see the future of Physical Empowerment more clearly. She explains: “Next, I’d like to see Physical Empowerment across Wales. I'm training coaches at the moment, one in Pembrokeshire and one in Llanelli, so we’re already laying the foundations for the organisation to grow. Further down the line, we would like to expand Physical Empowerment into England.”
Social Business Wales is keen to stay on this journey with Philippa. David explains: “Physical Empowerment offers a very niche service and the potential for growth is massive; Philippa has had incredible feedback so far and we’re all really looking forward to continuing to provide the support Philippa needs on this journey.”
To further aid Philippa in pursuing her ambitions for Physical Empowerment, UnLtd awarded her with their UnLtd Scaling Up Award in June. As part of this fantastic initiative, she will receive financial support as well as further help in developing her business model and income streams, ensuring continual growth with her venture.
ADVICE FOR OTHER START-UPS
Philippa believes if start-ups have self-belief, build on existing solutions, create partnerships and talk to Social Business Wales, they will succeed: “If I'd have known about Social Business Wales when I first set up the business, it would have made life a lot simpler. It's just good to know you have someone on your side.”
GET IN TOUCH
Inspired to make a difference to people or planet? Talk to our team of new start experts at Social Business Wales. To find out more about our services, phone 0300 111 5050 or email sbwenquiries@cwmpas.coop.
Social Business Wales, August 2024
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