GC Angels launches third cohort of Venture Forward accelerator programme

GC Angels launches third cohort of Venture Forward accelerator programme

GC Angels, the venture capital investment arm of The Growth Company – the largest social enterprise institution in Greater Manchester – has announced the third cohort of its Venture Forward accelerator programme.

The Innovate UK-backed programme supports underrepresented founders from across the North of England to prepare for their first institutional seed investment round. Delivered by the investment managers behind GC Angels, it equips early-stage founders with the first-hand knowledge, tools and investor connections needed to raise their first VC investment within the next 12 months.

Having already successfully delivered two cohorts with a total of 52 companies, this has led to 18 companies raising funds at a combined total of £4.6m, showing the ability of the programme to get founders investor-ready, along with crowding in private sector VCs. This success rate (35%) is also significantly higher than the estimated 0.05% of startup founders who manage to secure VC investment.

GC Angels has also directly invested in four companies across the two cohorts, directing £720k to ambitious founders.

Its third cohort of 21 Northern companies is continuing Venture Forward’s mission to target support at underrepresented founders, with 52% of founders from an ethnic minority background and women also making up 52% of the cohort. 64% of founders are from a lower socio-economic background, ensuring people who may have traditionally been overlooked for external finance can access the support they need.

The new cohort also continues to reflect the diversity of innovative companies across the North, with founders from Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield, Shropshire and North Wales. The companies span sectors including life sciences, cyber security, climate tech, medical tech, health tech, FMCG and edtech.

Running over eight weeks in Manchester, in partnership with NatWest Accelerator and NatWest Venture Banking, the programme offers founders expert-led workshops, one-to-one mentoring, practical fundraising guidance and direct access to investors. Following completion, GC Angels will offer up to £500k of equity investment to standout founders, providing the seed capital needed to scale their businesses and accelerate growth.

Marc Shirman, GC head of equity investment, said: “The success of the Venture Forward programme is really a testament to the incredible founders we have here in the North. Having launched our first cohort one year ago, 18 founders have already secured investment following the programme, with this seed funding being the essential first step in creating the next generation of scale-up businesses. Now as we launch cohort three, we’re committed to continuing this work and ensuring Northern founders have the confidence, knowledge and skills to attract investment.

“Central to Venture Forward’s ethos is ensuring founders who have traditionally been underrepresented have access to targeted support. This is about building a diverse early-stage ecosystem, closing knowledge gaps and ensuring any ambitious founder, no matter their background, can build and scale a business of their own. We’ve already proven how effective this support can be, and I can’t wait to see what our next cohort will go on to do.”

 Cohort 3:

 

16/09/2026