ICG, the global alternative asset manager, today announced a further £4m commitment over three years to support partnerships with four leading charities committed to improving educational opportunity and driving social mobility.
The firm will continue to partner with The Access Project, upReach and Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (“SEO”) for a further three years, with the addition of the Social Mobility Foundation (“SMF”) as a fourth strategic partner. Each charity will receive a total of £1m funding over the three year period. ICG’s flagship social mobility programme helps talented, disadvantaged young people access top universities and competitive early career opportunities.
Since the programme’s inception in May 2022, more than 14,300 young people in the UK and France have benefitted from ICG’s funding to drive their social mobility – significantly exceeding initial targets.
The new partnership with the Social Mobility Foundation will specifically help fund the charity’s innovative degree level apprenticeship offering. This increasingly popular route – which combines university education with on-the-job experience – is an attractive, alternative path in providing equitable access to professional firms.
Collectively, these four partnerships align with ICG’s purpose and values, alongside wider Diversity & Inclusion efforts.
Antje Hensel-Roth, Chief People & External Affairs Officer, commented:
I am delighted to continue our successful charity partnerships with The Access Project, upReach and SEO, reinforcing ICG’s commitment to drive social mobility. Our new partnership with the Social Mobility Foundation will help extend our impact even further, both geographically and in the breadth of opportunities available.
ICG is determined to continue its positive role in helping to create opportunities for talented young people, moving the dial towards a more inclusive alternative investment industry. I look forward to the next three years of collaboration with our four dynamic and impactful strategic charitable partners.
Nick Bent, CEO of upReach, commented:
“upReach is delighted to receive a further three years of support from ICG. Their funding to date has been transformational, they are a key strategic partner and will continue to help us support students from lower socio-economic backgrounds across the UK to discover a variety of career options, and develop the vital employability skills, networks and experiences needed to succeed in their chosen career and beyond. We will strengthen our collaboration with The Access Project, guaranteeing that eligible students who got to university with their help can receive employability support from upReach for the duration of their undergraduate studies.”
Anna Searle, CEO of The Access Project, added:
“At a time when school funding challenges are disproportionately affecting pupils from under-resourced backgrounds, our intervention is needed more than ever. Through our multi-year partnership with ICG, we have expanded into new regions, thereby enabling us to reach the young people who need us most. ICG’s support has been instrumental in delivering a new sustainable and scalable programme model, as well as in launching an online management system for more effective delivery for our schools and students. Our partnership has also extended beyond funding, with ICG volunteers actively helping our students pursue their aspirations.
Recognising that there are currently tens of thousands of young people eligible for our support, we launched our five-year growth strategy in 2024 to help greater numbers of young people to thrive in education. The continuation of our partnership with ICG over the next three years will have a transformative effect in delivering this strategy and driving social mobility.”
Nathalie Richards, CEO of SEO London, said:
“ICG’s continued partnership powerfully reaffirms our shared belief in the role that education and access to opportunity play in unlocking potential. Their generous support is enabling us to scale our Alternative Investments Programme in the UK and expand our reach in France through SEO Europe. Together, we are equipping the next generation of ambitious young people with the tools, networks and experiences they need to achieve career success.”
Sarah Atkinson, CEO of the Social Mobility Foundation, commented:
“We’re thrilled to join this programme and grateful to ICG for their commitment to improving social mobility and investing in strategic charity partnerships.
Degree level apprenticeships are a growing route into highly skilled careers but there is a big gap at every stage of the training journey depending on socioeconomic background. Through this partnership we will develop and grow our apprenticeship programme, supporting young people and working with employers to make the system fairer for all young people.”
For further information please contact:
ICG
Fiona Laffan
Tel: +44 (0)20 3545 2000
Mobile: +44 (0)7590 524 289
[email protected]
About ICG:
ICG (LSE: ICG) is a global alternative asset manager with $112bn* in AUM and more than three decades of experience generating attractive returns. We operate from over 20 locations globally and invest our clients’ capital across Structured Capital; Private Equity Secondaries; Private Debt; Credit; and Real Assets. Our exceptional people originate differentiated opportunities, invest responsibly, and deliver long-term value. We partner with management teams, founders, and business owners in a creative and solutions-focused approach, supporting them with our expertise and flexible capital. For more information visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn.
*As at 31 March 2025.
About upReach:
upReach is an award-winning social mobility charity driven by a vision of a society in which everybody has an equal opportunity to realise their full career potential, regardless of social background. Working in close partnership with leading employers and universities, we support 3,000 students from across the UK to discover a variety of career options, and develop the vital employability skills, networks and experiences needed to succeed in their chosen career and beyond.
About The Access Project:
The Access Project supports young people from under-resourced backgrounds to raise their aspirations, access top universities, and achieve social mobility. Recognising that talent is everywhere but opportunity is not, the charity was set up to tackle educational disadvantage. Since 2008, they have supported over 10,000 young people on their journey to higher education.
The Access Project’s intervention is consistently shown to have a benchmark-leading impact, with recent external verification from UCAS demonstrating that students on their programmes are 50% more likely to attend a top university than demographically and academically similar peers.
About SEO London:
Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO London) is a UK charity that unlocks potential and transforms careers. It empowers students and young professionals from underrepresented backgrounds, bridging the gap between untapped talent and the world’s most competitive industries.
Through strategic partnerships with industry giants across finance, consulting, technology and law, SEO London provides industry specific education and training, as well as mentoring and exclusive job opportunities. Since 2000, SEO London alumni have excelled in top global firms, proving that access and opportunity drive success.
About Social Mobility Foundation:
The Social Mobility Foundation’s mission is to unlock potential, broaden horizons, and create opportunities with and for ambitious young people who face barriers because of their socioeconomic background. They achieve this by running programmes supporting young people to access and succeed in highly skilled careers, influencing employers to create fairer workplaces, and campaigning to break down the systemic barriers. Each year, the SMF directly supports over 3,700 young people across the UK to achieve their potential through the Aspiring Professionals Programme, and drives systemic change including through the influential Social Mobility Employers Index.
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