Collaborative Future was launched in 2018 and incorporated in 2020 as a social enterprise by Ray Cooper, a transformational leader with over a decade of experience building successful teams and products. In 2024 we became a CIC. We had no shareholders and instead chose to reinvest all of our profits into furthering our social mission. We closed in 2024.
It is amazing to see the change we have created for both individuals and organisations. So many people struggle to confront systemic issues around diversity and inclusion - but our practical approaches are proving to be transformational for everyone we've worked with.
We want to share what we have been able to achieve over the past year and practice what we preach by showing rather than telling how our work has positively affected others.
You can still view our previous Impact Report.
Provide space and support for individuals, groups and workplaces to come together to develop skills, connections and opportunities for work which align with their values, unique strengths and experiences.
A society where anyone can find value and be valued in their work.
We believe existing hiring and working practices are not fit for purpose if we are going to create a world of work which empowers everyone to thrive. We are supporting people to replicate and build on our work placement programme in order to generate valuable work for diverse talent and connect communities with different perspectives.
We know that you can only truly understand someone's value in the workplace once you have experienced their skills and attitude in the right context so we have devised a hiring process that reflects this understanding. By working with us, organisations will find people who are good at work, not just interviews. This will improve the diversity of their teams to create more resilient organisations at the earliest stages.
We want unemployed and underemployed people to find work that they like, which fits the life they lead. To do this, we ensure they become part of our network, benefitting from the powerful impact of the support it can provide and gaining from the lasting change it can deliver. As well as helping other organisations build sustainable practices, we personally work on fixing systemic issues with practical action to improve diversity and inclusion by running our own work placement programme.
Our work fosters the creation of positive change without upheaval. Organisations can count on us supporting their understanding and introduction of better working practices to accelerate the future of work.
We learn from each other
We are open to opportunities to expand our network
We invite feedback and learnings that inform the growth of our network and team
We invest time in relationships
We bridge the distance between people
We bring people from different communities together
We listen deeply to ourselves and others
We care for and step up to support one another
We encourage people to bring their whole selves into their work
We shape our work around our strengths and interests
We enable people to pursue new avenues of work
We encourage the creation of work and learning opportunities within our network
We take risks in the pursuit of economic justice
We navigate conflict and uncertainty with confidence
We create opportunities for people to share their stories
You can also hear our team and 2021 programme cohort talk about Collaborative Future values, and share their thoughts on which aspects of the work are personally important to them and their community here.
On the Creative Futures programme, we are supporting 6 creative young people with their personal projects (i.e. Casey and his business, Mad Truth) and with wider projects in Nottingham (i.e. the Cattle Market Project) through the Government Kickstart Scheme.
Creative Futures 2021 cohort and Georgi
The CF team, interns and some businesses met in London after working remotely for 6 months. We celebrated how we all contributed to creating spaces where different people come together and talk freely about their experiences and ideas.
Cohort at CF Celebration 2021
Prisca joined the CF team after being an intern in 2020. This was just in time to kick off the new 2021 programme which brought together 7 young women to work for 15 businesses, doing a variety of tasks from copywriting to research and learning design.
Cohort and staff 2021
Sonia, an intern from the pilot, joined the CF team as a marketing and graphic design assistant. Using a £4k start up grant from Unltd, we run a new remote programme with 13 businesses and 13 freelance interns supported by 15 coaches and trainers.
Sonia working with a business
Tess crowdfunded with Works Social to run a pilot of the Collaborative Future work placement programme in Nottingham. We had 12 businesses and 6 young people working together and connecting to bring value to each other.
Celebrating the pilot
Tess ran an employment Hack Day to suport other young people who experienced a lack or restricted access to employment support. Planting the seeds for what then became Collaborative Future.
People at the employment Hack Day
Janice Gittens, Collaborative Future Coach
