Funding Accelerator FAQs

We do not have an investor network. Our approach is different. During Sprint 2 we’ll help you identify the right investors for your business by creating a Target Investor Profile. We then use this to compile a “Hit List” of investors who back businesses like yours. You will also receive access to investor search and outreach tools that help you to extend that “Hit List” and reach out to investors interested in your business.

50% of Funding Accelerator graduates secure equity investment – and a further 25% find alternative ways to fund and growth their businesses.

We have over 100 expert mentors supporting the programme, all experts in specific sectors, business models and key areas of functional expertise. Many of our mentors have run their own businesses so understand the startup journey. Some have even exited their businesses and are now investors. When you join the programme you will complete an onboarding form that helps us understand the areas where you need most support, and we use the findings from your Benchmark Assessment to match you with the mentors who are best placed to support you based on sector knowledge, functional expertise and lived experience.

78% of founders say that human connection is central to their entrepreneurial journey (source: The Rise Report of Female Entrepreneurship 2026) because connection creates confidence, confidence fuels action and action builds thriving businesses so matching you with the right mentors is a key component of the success of the Funding Accelerator programme. It’s not just us saying that, The Financial Times ranked Focused For Business as #13 in Europe for the quality of mentoring (source: The Financial Times Leading Startup Hubs 2026).

It is good to hear you have a pitch deck – it’s an important document for conveying your vision to investors. Truth is, you need more than one pitch deck to attract investors because you use different pitches at different stages in building your relationship with investors. As a minimum you will need:

1. an elevator pitch, used to quickly introduce your investment opportunity so an investor can confirm your opportunity meets their investment preferences

2. a short teaser pitch, used to entice an investor to meet with you

3. a  presented investment pitch, where you deliver your pitch perhaps to an angel network or in an initial meeting with an investor. This usually has approx 10 slides and very few words on the slides as investors should be listening to you pitch, not being distracted by reading what you have written

4. a “biz plan in a deck” used as a leave-behind after meeting so investor can explore the detail of your opportunity and start the due diligence process. 

So you can see there are different pitches for different occasions. Do you have all four?

Securing HMRC advance assurance is one thing – securing an investor is another! HMRC and investors assess opportunities in different ways and so need different information. For example, the pitch deck and forecast used to secure HMRC advance assurance needs to demonstrate the risk involved in making the investment (so an investor qualifies for a tax break), while investors need to see you have offset risk! 

You also need more than a pitch deck and forecast to secure an investor. Investors will also expect:

– a valuation and evidence that justifies the valuation – we use a proprietary three step process to develop a credible valuation with evidence that supports it.

– your financial forecast to show the detail of your growth plans – HMRC just requires the headline numbers. In Sprint 1 you will be provided with a detailed financial forecast template and a 1:1 review session with one of our expert forecast mentors who will test your assumptions, challenge your growth plans and gives you the experience and confidence to answer investors’ questions on your forecast and key metrics.

– a range of different pitches that you can use at different stages in building a relationship with investors. For example, when you first meet an investor you want to give a succinct intro to your business so an investor can confirm it meets their investment preferences – leaping into your 10 minute presented pitch is overkill and could waste both your time and the investors if you are talking to the wrong person

– an independent assessment of your investment opportunity – it can save an investor time to read an impartial assessment of your business, and if the assessment is strong it can bolster your credibility too.  At the end of Sprint 1 you will submit your long-form pitch deck and forecast for investor review, receiving a 24-page report with an overall investability score and detailed commentary on the strengths and weaknesses of your investment opportunity. Graduates of Sprint 1 usually achieve a high silver or gold score so the report becomes a key part of your investor outreach. If you skip Sprint 1 you miss out on this powerful tool.

The pitch deck and forecast used for HMRC differ from the ones presented to investors. Investors need to see that you have offset risk, while HMRC needs to know the investment is risky (so an investor qualifies for a tax break)! The key to developing strong investor materials is in exciting the investor with the potential upside of your opportunity, while showing sufficient detail, grounded planning and brilliant team to make your growth credible. HMRC only care about confirming there is risk so the documents you prepare for HMRC won’t contain sufficent detail to satisfy investors needs.

It depends on which sessions you would need to miss. We always record the weekly workshops – so you can catch up via replay. However, at the start of some workshops, you are paired with a mentor who provides feedback on the weekly assignment you complete. It is harder to re-arrange these sessions (our mentors are busy people) so we do ask you to prioritise attendance at the first 45 minutes of each weekly session. Which sessions do you need to miss and why? Is there anyway you can prioritise attendance for the first 45 minutes?