Big Issue Invest £3m loan secures future for outstanding SEND College

Big Issue Invest, the social investment arm of the Big Issue, has made its first deployment from its latest fund, Social Impact Debt Fund IV, providing a £3.2 million loan to a specialist education college for young adults with learning difficulties to buy and refurbish a new premises. 

Great Oaks College offers a range of further education opportunities to more than 100 young people in West London, catering for pupils aged 19 to 25 with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) ranging from moderate to severe. 

In 2023, just two months after it received an Outstanding Ofsted report, Great Oaks College was unexpectedly served a two-year notice to vacate its current purpose-built £38 million facility on a shared school site in Hounslow. The college struggled to secure an alternative suitable premises to safely accommodate its students with complex physical and educational needs. 

Unable to secure a mortgage or attract investors without a site, Great Oaks applied for a loan from Big Issue Invest’s Social Impact Debt Fund IV, which offers large, property backed loans for organisations making a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of their communities.  

The £3.2 million loan subsequently secured from Big Issue Invest has allowed the college to purchase new premises in Sunbury-on-Thames, due to open in 2026, with provision to continue supporting all 108 of its current students. 

Great Oaks College’s successful deal marks the first deployment by Social Impact Debt Fund IV. Fund IV was launched 18 months ago by Big Issue Invest, a social investor established 20 years ago by the founders of the world-famous street magazine, the Big Issue. Fund IV is able to reduce the amount of deposit required for a property backed loan by offering flexible loan repayment terms at a higher loan to property value than bank mortgage funding, and a single set of terms, instead of a combination of bank debt and separate mezzanine debt funding. 

Nickyie Thomas, Principal at Great Oaks College, said: “I was preparing to break the news to our students, staff, and families that the college could face closure. We felt as though we were running out of options—until we were introduced to Big Issue Invest. 

“There was fear, anxiety, and the deep worry that without financial backing, all the good we had built could be lost. Securing this funding has not only safeguarded the future of Great Oaks but has laid the foundation for growth. I love what Great Oaks stands for—and even more, what it has the potential to become, now we have this fantastic new backing from Big Issue Invest.” 

James Potter, Investment Director at Big Issue Invest, said: “We’re delighted to have made our first Social Impact Debt Fund IV loan commitment to Great Oaks College to allow it to transition to a new site and provide its students and staff with long term security. 

“This loan will remove the uncertainty and challenges of a short-term leased site and allow Great Oaks to own, manage and invest in its site, providing the students with the opportunity to make the most out of their time at the college, opening doors for their future. This funding to a critical piece of community infrastructure in Surrey creates exactly the type of long-term impact we’re trying to make with Fund IV and across Big Issue Invest.  

“The outcomes achieved by the students at Great Oaks College and the difference the college makes to their lives is why Big Issue Invest funds projects like this.” 

Organisations delivering services within Health and Social Care, Affordable Housing and Homelessness, and Community and Social Infrastructure sectors are invited to explore financing options between £1 million and £3.5 million through Big Issue Invest’s Social Impact Debt Fund. 

If you’re driving positive change and need funding to scale your impact, apply now.