Our parent organisation, FRC Group, is all about creating social value –  it’s in the group’s DNA. FRC Group is a social enterprise; which means it runs businesses, including FRC and Buckingham Interiors, and use the profits to improve lives and help End Furniture Poverty. We are one of the country’s oldest, most established and effective social enterprises – and we can prove it!

The NatWest SE100 awards are a national scheme of awards designed to honour the achievements, and raise the profile of, social businesses in the UK. The SE100 has recognized our achievements so consistently, that, this year, they had to create an entirely new category of award – a Hall of Fame – to prevent us from winning every other award!

Tim West, founder and principal of Matter & Co who created the awards with NatWest, presented FRC Group with its Hall of Fame award. He told the audience that FRC Group has led from the front on all aspects of measuring and demonstrating its impact, and using social impact measurement to become a better organisation.

Tim explained: “There was no shortlist for this award. I can tell you that the winner has been a finalist in the Impact Champion category of the NatWest SE100 Awards ever since the awards began. It was the winner in the first year of the awards and also won the Resilience Award last year.  

 “Every year this organisation’s performance has been so impressive that it has been a challenge for the judges not to award it a winner’s trophy each time. So this year we are very pleased to induct this organisation as our first member of the NatWest SE100 Hall of Fame.”

The NatWest SE100 Awards celebrates the growth, impact, ambition and resilience of social enterprises in the UK. We were chosen from almost 1,500 social ventures on the NatWest SE100 Index – which tracks the progress and impact of social enterprises across the UK.

Shaun Doran, our group’s CEO, said: “We were surprised and delighted to win this award and become the inaugural members of the SE100 Hall of Fame, even if the ulterior motive was to stop us scooping up all the other awards! Seriously though we are really honoured by this award which is recognition for the whole team at FRC Group and is a great boost to our campaign to End Furniture Poverty.

Rob Wilson, MP and Minister for Civil Society, supporting the awards commented: “Social Enterprises across the country are making a positive impact on our society, and it’s great that these awards have recognized the leaders in this sector across the UK. Congratulations to everyone involved. I hope their achievements will inspire others to help our communities and improve lives.”

The awards were hosted at the NatWest/RBS conference centre in London by Simon Jacobs, Chief Administrative Officer Commercial & Private Banking at RBS, and Chair of NatWest Social & Community Capital.  Julie Baker, Head of Enterprise at NatWest RBS, praised the winners for their “determination not just to make money but to make a difference.”

She told them: “We value what you do, both for the economy and for our communities. We want you to shout loud about your achievements because we want to demonstrate that social businesses are also good businesses. That’s the whole philosophy behind the NatWest SE100.”

Our commitment to social value is unique among providers of furniture to social housing. When purchasing from FRC, you are not only buying product quality and a first class service – you are transforming your supply chain and directly helping to improve lives.