Young Man with Glasses SmilingAbout us - SOAR AHEAD (Charity No 1106403)

The “Centre for Youth Enterprise Development” (CfYED) is a flagship initiative developed and delivered by SOAR AHEAD,  a registered charity organisation. Our main objectives are to;
  1. Promote positive social and cultural attitude towards entrepreneurship
  2. Provision of small scale enterprise education and training by SFEDI and NFTE qualified business advisers/mentors
  3. Provision of Business Start-up support and associated physical infrastructure
  4. Provide AIG and sign-posting on Start-up Financing and Funding
  5. Introduction of pro-active interventions in direct support of business start-ups
  6. Promotion of micro small and medium scale enterprise (MSMEs)
  7. Continue to play strategic role in shaping Government and local policies linked with enterprise and micro-economic reforms

What we aim to achieve:

  • Train, motivate and equip people to start their own business and become enterprise role models that will actively promote a positive attitude towards enterprise creation. 
  • Introduce women, young adults and unemployed people to the world of enterprise. 
  • Help local residents appreciate and embrace enterprise as an alternative employment/career path to break the cycle of poverty. 
  • Provide business mentorship on starting and operating a successful enterprise. 
  • Unleashing Winners in the Market Place

Working in partnership with other local training providers, Soar Ahead has been commissioned by the Barking & Dagenham Enterprise (Bold & Dynamic) to deliver enterprise awareness workshops and support under the £15.5m Local Growth Enterprise Initiative (LEGI) programme. We focus on additional interventions relevant to enterprise and business start-up and the delivery of enterprise workshops focussing on helping beneficiaries generate buisness ideas, the business planning process and sign-posting to other relevant routes such as franchising, mentoring, social enterprise and other main stream business development agencies. To ensure we meet the enterprise training needs, support, cutting edge knowledge, new technologies and business resources of the communities we serve, we partner with the following established organisations;

  1. Barking & Dagenham Small Business Centre
  2. Enterprise Education Trust (NFTE)
  3. Barking & Dagenahm Enterprise - Bold and Dynamic
  4. University of East London - Knowledge Dock
  5. National Black Women's Network (NBWN) 
  6. Business Link London

Local Enterprise Awareness & Master Class Programme

Developing and promoting enterprise in the heart of the community is one of our key objectives. We focus on developing an enterprise culture, create awareness and opportunities to participate in enterprise and entrepreneurial skills, inspire and equip through tailor made training programmes and stimulate entrepreneurial thinking to encourage enterprise creation as a career path. The Enterprise Awareness & Master Class Workshops help local people pursue their aspirations for enterprise and also access the opportunities that exists. We continue to achieve our aim of increasing total entrepreneurial activity among the local population, support growth and reduce failure rate of locally owned businesses. Over 300 local residents have attended these workshops. Some comments include...
 
"I have been motivated to continue with what I have started, workshop was very informative indeed" JO
"The workshop is fantastic and an eye opener and has inspired me to move on to start my own business" OF
"This workshop has given me a clear understanding of how to run my own business" ROO
"This workshop has greatly helped me. It has given me ideas, strength, hope, direction and that I can make it" MGM
"The workshop has helped me to be more focussed and to be more determined in achieving my goals" ACA
" I am now more enthisiastic about beginning my journey to success; the workshop has given me a framework and guidance as it were to get started" CE
"The workshop has given me the confidence to start a business" SM
"It gave me a clearer picture of what needs to be done and how to go about it professionally, stressfree and start my own business in plumbing & drainage with the company of a franchise" PK
"The trainer was very knowledgeable and has helped answer some of my questions; and will like to attend the next workshop" CA