Capital City Partnership

What Capital City Partnership does

Capital City Partnership (legal name: The Capital City Partnership Limited) is a registered charity headquartered in Edinburgh that operates as the anchor delivery body for Edinburgh's employability and skills strategy. Its core function is to coordinate a cross-agency partnership approach — the Local Employability Partnership (LEP) — bringing together City of Edinburgh Council, the Department for Work and Pensions, NHS Lothian, Edinburgh College, the University of Edinburgh, Skills Development Scotland, the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, and the Edinburgh Voluntary Organisations' Council, alongside other third-sector providers. It contract-manages and performance-manages publicly funded employability services under the Scottish Government's No One Left Behind framework and the UK/Scottish Government Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal Integrated Regional Employability and Skills (IRES) programme, covering six local authorities (Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, West Lothian, Fife, and Scottish Borders) that together represent approximately 24% of Scotland's population.

CCP's offering is service-delivery rather than software. Its core products are the LEP coordination framework, the Joined Up for Jobs (job-seeker) and Joined Up for Business (employer) front-door services, and the IRES programme under the City Region Deal. Physical service delivery is enabled through Recruitment and Skills Centres at Fort Kinnaird and the FUSE centre within St James Quarter. A portfolio of sector-specific recruitment and skills campaigns — Proud to Care (health and social care), Think Retrofit Skills (energy efficiency), Bus Driver Careers (transport), and Green Economy Jobs — addresses targeted labour-shortage occupations. Underlying technology is limited to performance management systems, client management information systems, and partner coordination platforms supporting contract and grant administration; no proprietary AI/ML, patents, trademarks, or integrated APIs are disclosed.

The revenue model is that of a publicly funded charity: grant and contract income from UK Government, Scottish Government, and local authority frameworks, with services provided free of charge to both job seekers and employers. CCP is governed by a voluntary Board of Directors (Chair Councillor Tim Pogson, Vice-Chair Donald Urquhart, plus Directors Councillor Jack Caldwell and Steve Lawrence), led by Chief Executive Rona Hunter and Deputy CEO Dr Kate Kelman, supported by approximately fifteen heads of function across employer engagement, knowledge systems, contracts and grants, business intelligence, training, strategy, and operations. Accredited as a Living Wage and Living Hours employer, a Disability Confident Leader (31.25% of workforce identifying as disabled), and an Armed Forces Covenant employer, the organisation is structurally tied to the Scottish employability funding ecosystem and operates without disclosed revenue, private-equity backing, or planned IPO/divestiture activity.

Name

Capital City Partnership

Legal name

The Capital City Partnership Limited

Website

https://capitalcitypartnership.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Capital City Partnership is a registered charity and the designated anchor delivery body coordinating Edinburgh and South East Scotland's publicly funded employability and skills strategy across six local authorities, serving job seekers, employers, and partner agencies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Employability and Skills Services

NAICS

Employment Placement Agencies (561311)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Employer-Led Workforce Partnerships & Sector Strategies (EDAAAOAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Works & Municipal Services Labor Staffing (BPACAEAM)

Keywords

• Employability services
• Skills training
• Workforce development
• Job seeker support
• Public sector partnership

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Funding and Grants: Capital City Partnership is a registered charity funded primarily through government frameworks including UK Government, Scottish Government, and local authority funding. Major funding streams include the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal (IRES programme) and No One Left Behind employability funding.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Capital City Partnership coordinates and delivers employability and skills services across Edinburgh and South East Scotland, acting as the anchor delivery body for the Local Employability Partnership. It contracts and performance-manages funded employability services, connects job seekers with training and employment opportunities through Recruitment and Skills Centres (Fort Kinnaird and FUSE at St James Quarter), and runs sector-specific campaigns such as Proud to Care, Think Retrofit Skills, Bus Driver Careers and Green Economy Jobs under the Integrated Regional Employability and Skills (IRES) programme.

Product overview

Capital City Partnership operates as a coordinated partnership approach rather than a single tech product. The core offering consists of the Local Employability Partnership (LEP), Joined Up for Jobs, and Joined Up for Business frameworks, supported by the Integrated Regional Employability and Skills (IRES) Programme under the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. Physical service delivery is enabled through Recruitment and Skills Centres including Fort Kinnaird and FUSE (St James Quarter). Targeted sector campaigns including Proud to Care, Think Retrofit Skills, Bus Driver Careers, and Green Economy Jobs complement the service portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Local Employability Partnership (LEP) Strategic partnership framework coordinating key agencies and frontline services in Edinburgh to tackle inequality, improve job outcomes and increase skills through the Strategic Skills Pipeline.
• Joined Up for Jobs Free job seeker support service combining partner agencies and frontline services through the Strategic Skills Pipeline to help people into employment, improve skills and reduce poverty.
• Joined Up for Business Free recruitment and training service for businesses offering a no wrong door approach, business growth support for SMEs and recruitment assistance through skills centres.
• FUSE Skill Centre (St James Quarter) Skills centre supporting recruitment of job seekers into roles within the St James Quarter development and the wider Edinburgh Business Improvement District, funded by St James Quarter.
• Fort Kinnaird Recruitment and Skills Centre Recruitment and Skills Centre operating as a public/private partnership providing employer relationship building and job matching services in Edinburgh.
• Integrated Regional Employability and Skills (IRES) Programme Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal programme delivering integrated regional employability and skills through seven core themes including labour market analysis, employer engagement and skills gateways, with Capital City Partnership supporting through the Project Management Office.
• Proud to Care Campaign Regional campaign across six local authorities addressing the health and social care recruitment crisis through video content (Vimeo, YouTube, STV and ITV advertising) and career pathway resources.
• Think Retrofit Skills Campaign Campaign promoting skills and career opportunities in the retrofit sector for energy efficiency improvements across Edinburgh and South East Scotland.
• Bus Driver Careers Campaign Campaign addressing bus driver recruitment and career opportunities across the Edinburgh and South East Scotland region.
• Green Economy Jobs Campaign Campaign promoting employment and career opportunities in the green economy sector across Edinburgh and South East Scotland.

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Edinburgh Local Employability Partnership (LEP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormal partnership bringing together CEOs and senior leaders from City of Edinburgh Council, DWP, NHS Lothian, Edinburgh College, University of Edinburgh, Skills Development Scotland, Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, and EVOC to strategically coordinate employability and skills delivery across Edinburgh.
• Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region DealcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK and Scottish government-led investment programme covering Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, West Lothian, Fife, and Scottish Borders. Capital City Partnership supports the IRES programme and works within the Project Management Office.
• City of Edinburgh CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHead of Business and Inclusive Growth sits on the Local Employability Partnership. Council provides strategic alignment and funding for employability services.
• Department for Work and PensionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDistrict Manager East and South East Scotland participates in LEP. DWP provides employment services and Job Centre Plus connections for job seeker referrals.
• NHS LothiancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmployability Lead from NHS Lothian participates in LEP. Partnership supports health and social care workforce development through Proud to Care campaign.
• Edinburgh CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVice Principal participates in LEP. College provides vocational training and skills pathways for job seekers.
• University of EdinburghcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVice Principal for Careers Service participates in LEP. University provides graduate employability support and pathways.
• Skills Development ScotlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional Manager participates in LEP. SDS provides career information, advice and guidance services.
• Edinburgh Chamber of CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHead of Policy and Innovation participates in LEP. Chamber supports business engagement and employer connections.
• EVOC (Edinburgh Voluntary Organisations' Council)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChief Executive of Third Sector Interface EVOC participates in LEP. EVOC coordinates third sector employability providers.
• St James QuarterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSt James Quarter development provided funding for Business Support Assistant post at FUSE skills centre. Partnership supports recruitment of staff into retail jobs at the shopping centre.
• Health and Social Care ScotlandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supports Proud to Care campaign to direct job seekers to health and social care career pathways across the six City Region Deal local authorities.
• No One Left BehindcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerScottish Government employability framework that CCP contract manages. Provides funding for integrated employability services across Edinburgh.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• PeoplePlus: UK employment and skills provider delivering welfare-to-work programmes. Comparable because it runs contracted employability services with sector-specific employer partnerships (similar model to CCP's Proud to Care or Bus Driver campaigns).
• The Prince's Trust: UK-wide charity focused on youth employability, skills training, and education. Comparable because it runs employer-led pathways and sector-skills programmes (e.g., health, construction) for disadvantaged job seekers, funded by government and corporate partners.
• Catch22: UK social business running employability programmes including the DWP Restart Scheme. Comparable because it operates at scale in contracted government employment-services markets with employer engagement and skills training components.
• Ingeus: UK provider of employment, health, and skills services operating DWP Restart and similar programmes. Comparable because it delivers regional employability services through government contracts with employer engagement and skills pathways.
• Reed in Partnership: Employment services division of Reed, delivering DWP-commissioned programmes such as Restart. Comparable because it provides contracted employability and recruitment services funded by central and local government, working with employers to fill roles.
• Wise Group: Scottish social enterprise delivering employment, skills, and training services across multiple regions including Glasgow. Comparable because it operates employability services with public sector funding and employer engagement in similar regional settings.
• Skills Development Scotland: Scotland's national skills body, delivering career information, advice, and guidance services. Direct peer because SDS is a core LEP partner for CCP and operates the same public-sector-funded employability and skills agenda across Scotland.

Broad incumbents

• Remploy: Established UK provider of disability employment services with national footprint. Comparable because it supports disadvantaged job seekers into work through employer partnerships and skills training, operating at a larger scale than CCP.
• Department for Work and Pensions (DWP): UK government department delivering employment services directly through JobCentre Plus and contracted programmes. Comparable because it is both a CCP partner and a potential alternative delivery channel for employability funding, shaping the same public-sector landscape.
• Serco Employment, Skills and Enterprise: Division of Serco delivering government-commissioned employment and skills services. Comparable because it competes for the same employability contracts and operates regional employment programmes for disadvantaged job seekers across the UK.

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/capital-city-partnership-edinburgh
• Xx.com/CapitalCityPart

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

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 Capital City Partnership