What Inspiring the Future does

Inspiring the Future is a registered UK charity (operating under Education and Employers, charity number 1130760) that runs a free online platform connecting state schools and colleges with workplace volunteers from across the UK. Founded in 2012 and nationally launched in 2013, the service has signed up over 90,000 volunteers and more than 85% of UK secondary schools (plus 35% of primary schools), facilitating over 4.85 million interactions between volunteers and young people. The platform is built on Salesforce.com infrastructure and supports both in-person activities and virtual sessions via Zoom/Microsoft Teams, with sub-brands including Primary Futures (for ages 5-11), Inspiring Women, Inspiring Apprenticeships, and Plug + Play Videos (a library of 30 pre-recorded career videos across Key Stages 1-4).

The organisation's business model is donation- and grant-funded: the service is provided free of charge to UK state schools, colleges, and volunteers, with revenue (not publicly disclosed) coming from corporate supporters (notably Bank of America as lead corporate supporter), charitable foundations, and government-linked grants. Go-to-market is community-led and self-serve: schools, teachers, and volunteers register directly through the platform, with employer-organised schemes and regional campaigns (e.g., Doncaster, Blackpool, Derby) layered on top. Distribution is UK-wide (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) with one international expansion to Australia in 2017 via a partnership with Schools Industry Partnership.

The broader competitive position is anchored by 20+ years of parent-organisation research demonstrating measurable impact (most notably an 80% reduction in NEET odds for young people with high employer engagement), a deep partnership ecosystem (NAHT, Medical Schools Council, British Council, Edge Foundation, Royal Warrant Holders Association, Salesforce itself), and a high-profile brand (e.g., the 2016 #RedrawtheBalance campaign achieved 27M+ views and a Campaign Big Awards Silver). Revenue concentration risk is moderate-to-low across funders but the model carries the structural risks of a UK charity: grant-cycle volatility, government policy shifts, and dependence on continued corporate CSR appetite.

Name

Inspiring the Future

Legal name

Inspiring the Future

Website

https://inspiringthefuture.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Inspiring the Future is a UK charity running a free Salesforce-based platform that connects state schools and colleges with 90,000+ workplace volunteers to deliver career inspiration activities for children and young people.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Career Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (6117), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Youth-to-Adult Transition & Life Skills (Independent Living, Soft Skills) (EDAAAFAN)

Keywords

• Career education services
• Volunteer matching platform
• School employer engagement
• Career guidance programs
• Workforce outreach initiatives

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. Donations and Charitable Funding: As a charity (registered number 1130760), Inspiring the Future is operated by Education and Employers charity and relies on donations. The service is free for all state schools, with funding coming from corporate supporters and charitable foundations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Inspiring the Future is a free online platform that connects UK state schools and colleges with workplace volunteers who deliver career inspiration activities such as speed networking, mock interviews, and classroom talks. The service spans primary schools (Primary Futures, ages 5-11) and secondary schools/colleges (ages 11-18), supplemented by 30 pre-recorded Plug + Play Videos, themed sector campaigns, and an annual Volunteer Awards programme. All services are provided at no cost to state schools, teachers, and volunteers, funded through charitable donations and corporate partnerships.

Product overview

Inspiring the Future operates as a unified platform connecting UK state schools with volunteers from the world of work. The core offering consists of the Inspiring the Future Platform for secondary schools and colleges, alongside Primary Futures for primary schools (ages 5-11). The portfolio includes Plug+Play Videos as a supplementary resource with 30 pre-recorded career-focused videos, plus themed campaigns covering sectors like Aviation, Maritime, Healthcare, and Creative Industries. Volunteer management is handled through a Salesforce.com-based online portal, and the programme is complemented by annual Volunteer Awards. All services are provided free to state schools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Primary Futures: A programme specifically aimed at primary age children to help them understand why literacy and numeracy matters and learn about the range of jobs and careers available.
• Plug + Play Videos
• Inspiring Women
• Inspiring Apprenticeships

Products and services

• Inspiring the Future Platform Free online platform connecting UK state secondary schools and colleges with volunteers from the world of work who deliver career activities including speed networking, mock interviews, and classroom talks to broaden student aspirations.
• Primary Futures Specialised programme for UK primary schools (ages 5-11) that brings volunteers into classrooms to help young children understand the link between literacy, numeracy and future careers through interactive 'What's My Line?' activities and other career inspiration sessions.
• Plug + Play Videos Library of 30 pre-recorded video resources featuring real professionals from various industries, designed for flexible classroom use with accompanying lesson plans and worksheets. Videos cover Key Stages 1-4 for both primary and secondary school audiences.
• Volunteer Awards Annual awards programme celebrating volunteers who inspire young people through Inspiring the Future activities, with categories including First Time Star, Incredible Impact, Above and Beyond, and Longest Serving.

Quantifiable outcome

• Young people with highest levels of employer engagement before age 16 have 80% lower odds of becoming NEET
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and strategic.

• Education and EmployerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInspiring the Future is run by the Education and Employers charity (registered number 1130760). The parent organization provides operational support, research capabilities, and strategic direction.
• National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAHT partnered with Education and Employers to develop Primary Futures, specifically targeting primary school children to help them understand why literacy and numeracy matters and learn about career possibilities.
• Medical Schools CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Who\'s in Health? campaign to get volunteers from the health sector into primary schools, helping children understand how people in healthcare use literacy, maths and science in their careers.
• Royal Warrant Holders AssociationstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for campaigns bringing Royal Warrant holding companies into schools to inspire students about diverse career possibilities.
• Edge FoundationstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Career Footsteps project introducing students to vocational, technical and practical career routes and learning.
• British CouncilstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Inspiring Languages campaign encouraging young people to learn languages and understand how language skills impact job prospects.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights12 records

Others

• National Careers Service: UK government-funded service providing careers information, advice, and guidance. Adjacent rather than directly competitive; provides the public-sector context for Inspiring the Future's school-focused offering.

Broad incumbents

• Young Enterprise: UK education charity focused on enterprise and financial education for young people. Comparable K-12 audience and school-partnership model, though oriented toward entrepreneurship rather than broader careers.
• The Prince's Trust: Large UK youth charity supporting education, training, and employment for disadvantaged young people. Operates in an overlapping youth-employability space but with a broader welfare and skills mandate.

Direct peers

• Education and Employers: Parent organisation of Inspiring the Future; runs the same mission of connecting schools with employers, and operates related programmes like Primary Futures and the research function that backs Inspiring the Future's evidence base.
• icould: UK career inspiration platform using real-life video stories to help young people explore careers. Inspiring the Future's Plug + Play Videos is a comparable product, and icould is even listed as a partner in Inspiring the Future's data.
• Speakers for Schools: UK charity that connects state schools with leading professionals for talks and work experience. Directly comparable in mission, free-to-schools model, and volunteer/speaker recruitment approach.
• Career Ready: UK social mobility charity that links employers with young people through mentoring, internships, and masterclasses. Comparable target audience (secondary schools and colleges) and employer-engagement model.

Emerging players

• Skills Builder Partnership: UK social enterprise focused on building essential skills in young people through partnerships with schools and employers. Comparable in employer-school engagement model though smaller and more focused on skills frameworks.
• Battersea Foundation / Tomorrow's People: UK charity supporting disadvantaged young people into employment through training and employer engagement. Comparable youth-employment mission and corporate partnership model, though focused on out-of-school youth.
• Worktree: UK charity providing career-related activities in primary and secondary schools using employer volunteers. Smaller scale than Inspiring the Future but highly comparable in volunteer-driven primary/secondary career education.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/inspiringthefuture

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries3 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 Inspiring the Future