Young Enterprise

What Young Enterprise does

Young Enterprise is the UK's largest education enterprise charity, founded in 1962 by Sir Walter Salomon and registered as a charity in England & Wales (No. 313697) and Scotland (SC054666). It delivers financial capability, entrepreneurship and employability programmes to children and young people aged 5–24 across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, working with approximately 46% of UK secondary schools and engaging over 566,000 young people this year (482,000+ in the prior year) alongside nearly 22,000 teachers, corporate volunteers and alumni. The portfolio spans more than twenty named programmes and resources — including My Money Week, Money Heroes, Fiver Challenge, 10X Challenge, Company Programme, Team Programme, Start Up, Innovation Studios, Employability Masterclass, Your Money Matters, CPD Courses, MoneySmarts, Smartmonies and the Inspiring Futures programme for disadvantaged youth — each delivered either as a week-long activity, a month-long business challenge with £5/£10 pledges, or a year-long student-company experience.

Programmes are delivered through a regional field force of dedicated Education Partnership Managers covering eleven UK regions plus Northern Ireland, supported by a corporate volunteer network. The organisation operates a small portfolio of branded digital platforms for online delivery (YE Learning Zone, Company Connect) and target-audience campaigns (Money Heroes, Fiver Challenge, 10X Challenge). Programmes are mapped to UK national curricula including Gatsby Benchmarks, PSHE, Curriculum for Excellence and Curriculum for Wales, and the charity runs the Financial Education Quality Mark certification with support from the Money and Pensions Service.

The business model is that of a UK registered charity rather than a commercial enterprise. Programmes are offered free to schools and young people, with funding coming from philanthropic grants, corporate partnerships and major donor support. Named supporters include HSBC UK, National Grid, Westminster Foundation, Jack Petchey Foundation, JP Morgan Chase, Aviva, M&G, SSE, London Stock Exchange Group, Wells Fargo, NatWest, KPMG, Cushman & Wakefield, Delta and Lyreco; the Westminster Foundation and National Grid relationships are multi-year flagship commitments, and resource-development consultancy services are also sold on a bespoke basis (Inspiring Futures is cited at £3,300 per school). Go-to-market is therefore a hybrid of regional direct engagement with schools and councils, corporate partnership development, and philanthropic fundraising.

Name

Young Enterprise

Legal name

Young Enterprise

Website

https://young-enterprise.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1962

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Young Enterprise is the UK's largest education enterprise charity, delivering financial capability, entrepreneurship and employability programmes to over 566,000 young people annually across 46% of UK secondary schools, funded through corporate partnerships, grants and philanthropy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Financial and Enterprise Education Services

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (611710), Business and Secretarial Schools (61141), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Financial Literacy, Budgeting & Personal Finance (EDAMAHAE), Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA), Entrepreneurship & Small Business Workforce Programs (EDAAAOAM), Early Childhood Education & Childcare Nonprofits (BPAGADAA), Small Business & Entrepreneurship Community Education (EDAAAFAK)

Keywords

• Financial education programmes
• Enterprise education charity
• Youth entrepreneurship programmes
• Financial literacy training
• Work readiness education

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Giving and Grants: Young Enterprise operates as a registered charity (No. 313697 in England & Wales and SC054666 in Scotland) funded primarily through grants, philanthropic donations, and corporate partnerships. Supporters include major organizations such as HSBC UK, National Grid, Westminster Foundation, Jack Petchey Foundation, and many other businesses and charitable foundations.
2. Corporate Partnerships and Sponsorship: The organization generates revenue through strategic partnerships with businesses that provide funding, employee volunteering, and programme delivery support. Partners include companies across sectors including banking, energy, insurance, and professional services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Young Enterprise is a UK registered charity that designs and delivers enterprise and financial education programmes for young people aged 5-24 through schools, colleges and youth organisations. Its core offerings include the year-long Company Programme where students set up and run real businesses, shorter entrepreneurship challenges such as Fiver and 10X, primary-school financial education (Money Heroes, My Money Week), employability programmes (Start Up, Learn to Earn, Employability Masterclass), and a Financial Education Quality Mark certification for third-party resources. Programmes are typically free to schools and are funded through grants, philanthropic donations and corporate partnerships.

Product overview

Young Enterprise is a charity offering a portfolio of educational programmes and resources focused on financial capability, entrepreneurship, and work readiness for young people aged 5-24+. The portfolio consists of multiple programmes including My Money Week, Money Heroes, Fiver Challenge, 10X Challenge, Company Programme, Team Programme, Start Up, and various shorter workshops like Launchpad and Employability Masterclass. These are complemented by resources including Your Money Matters textbook, CPD Courses, MoneySmarts, Smartmonies, and Financial Education Planning Frameworks. The programmes range from week-long activities (My Money Week), month-long challenges (£5/£10 pledges), to extended year-long experiences (Company Programme). The company also operates a Financial Education Quality Mark certification programme for third-party resources and maintains an Alumni Network for former participants.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• My Money Week A national activity week for primary and secondary schools, supported by HSBC UK, providing financial education engagement opportunities for young people.
• Money Heroes Award-winning fully-funded programme supported by HSBC UK that seeks to transform financial education for primary school children.
• Centres of Excellence Supports schools to embed and deliver high-quality financial education across their curriculum in a meaningful and sustainable way.
• My Money Matters An online course for students providing the opportunity to explore attitudes to money and gain key financial skills.
• Fiver Challenge A four-week programme for children aged 5-11 to research, create, plan and run their own business with a £5 pledge.
• 10X Challenge A highly interactive four-week programme for young people aged 11-19 to research, create, plan and run their own business with a £10 pledge.
• Company Programme A real-life learning opportunity that introduces young people to the world of work as they set up and run their own student company over an academic year.
• Team Programme An enterprise journey for students with mild to moderate learning difficulties, providing adapted support and activities.
• Start Up The ultimate employability and entrepreneurship experience for Higher Education and Further Education students.
• Employability Masterclass Helps students understand the skills and qualities required to be successful in the workplace and build awareness of career pathways.
• Innovation Studios A ready-to-teach interactive workshop that leads students through tasks to develop a solution to a challenge set by corporate partners.
• Launchpad A fast-paced, engaging and competitive team enterprise challenge that builds understanding of work and promotes enterprising attitudes.
• Learn to Earn Helps young people explore future opportunities, their own skills and what employers are looking for and value in the workplace.
• Pathways to Progress Empowers students aged 16-24 from diverse backgrounds by providing essential skills, knowledge, and opportunities to enhance employability and career readiness.
• Inspiring Futures Supports young people who face the greatest barriers to build confidence, resilience and employability through entrepreneurship, mentoring and financial education.
• Alumni Network Connects young people and YE alumni at every stage of their journey, supporting them to build skills, gain experience, and plan their future through networking and events.
• Financial Education Quality Mark A quality assurance certification for third-party financial education resources, supported by the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS).
• Future Founders Entrepreneurship programme delivered in partnership with Go Succeed across all 11 councils and six further education colleges in Northern Ireland.

Quantifiable outcome

• 87% of young people feel more confident after taking part
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Go SucceedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Go Succeed to deliver the Future Founders entrepreneurship programme in Northern Ireland, engaging more than 2,500 young people in its first year through interactive workshops, Innovation Camp, and Entrepreneurship Hub.
• Young Enterprise NIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional partner delivering the Future Founders programme in partnership with all 11 councils and six further education colleges across Northern Ireland.
• HSBC UKflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor corporate supporter providing funding for My Money Week (national activity week for primary and secondary schools) and Money Heroes programme (award-winning financial education for primary schools).
• National GridflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerFive-year partnership delivering Pathways to Progress Access programme through school/college outreach, equipping 16-24 year olds with skills, confidence, and career readiness for the energy sector and green economy.
• Glasgow Kelvin CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational partner working with Young Enterprise Scotland.
• Skills Development ScotlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment partner supporting skills development initiatives in Scotland.
• Money and Pensions Service (MaPS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArm's length body of UK government supporting the Financial Education Quality Mark, helping people manage their money today and for the future.
• Junior Achievement WorldwideflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerYoung Enterprise is part of Junior Achievement Worldwide, the world's largest organization dedicated to inspiring young people to dream and succeed.
• Cushman & WakefieldcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThree-year partnership supporting Young Enterprise programmes through employee volunteering and programme delivery.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Junior Achievement USA: US counterpart in the Junior Achievement Worldwide network; delivers enterprise and financial education programmes to K-12 students through schools, volunteers and corporate partners. Directly comparable mission, programme mix (Company Programme equivalents) and school-based delivery model.
• Junior Achievement Ireland: Irish sister organisation under Junior Achievement Worldwide delivering enterprise and financial literacy programmes to secondary school students. Closest geographic and structural peer, sharing the YE brand lineage and programme methodologies.
• Junior Achievement Europe: European coordinating body of the JA network, of which Young Enterprise is the UK member. Operates the same enterprise-education model across multiple European countries and shares curriculum, volunteer frameworks and corporate partnership templates.
• Enabling Enterprise: UK education charity that partners with schools to build enterprise skills and employability through real-world business challenges. Highly comparable UK school-delivery model, teacher-facing programmes and corporate volunteer engagement.
• The Prince's Trust: Major UK youth charity focused on 11-30 year olds, supporting employability, education and enterprise through programmes and corporate partnerships. Comparable target age range, enterprise programmes, corporate funding model and UK geographic footprint.
• Speakers for Schools: UK charity connecting schools and colleges with leading professionals for talks, work experience and employability programmes. Comparable school-channel delivery, corporate volunteer mobilisation and education-to-employment outcomes focus.
• EVERFI: US-based social impact education company providing digital financial literacy, employability and STEM resources to K-12 schools and colleges. Comparable curriculum-aligned financial education product (Aspire, Thrive — both also listed in YE's resource portfolio) and corporate-funded school distribution.
• Founders4Schools: UK charity connecting school students with business founders and entrepreneurs through career insights and work-inspiration events. Comparable enterprise-education mission, UK school delivery and employer volunteer model.

Broad incumbents

• NatWest Group (MoneySense and Skills & Opportunities programmes): Major UK bank offering free financial education (MoneySense) and employability programmes to UK schools, directly competing for teacher attention and corporate social value positioning in the same financial literacy category as YE's Money Heroes and My Money Week.

Others

• Money and Pensions Service (MaPS): Arm's-length body of the UK Government that funds and coordinates financial wellbeing initiatives and supports the Financial Education Quality Mark delivered with YE. Not a competitor but a key funder, strategic partner and policy-anchoring entity shaping the UK financial education landscape in which YE operates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/youngenterprise
• Facebookfacebook.com/youngenterpriseuk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/young-enterprise-uk
• Instagraminstagram.com/youngenterpriseuk

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles22 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Young Enterprise