Pathways Forward, the not-for-profit set up by Scottish entrepreneur and investor Ana Stewart, is gaining wider recognition for its Pledge initiative where companies sign up to specific actions that are then tracked and shared across organisations aimed at driving equal opportunity for women in entrepreneurship and business.

Barclays, Venture Café Edinburgh, Cruinn Consulting, The Ventures Lab, and existing member Elevator are coming together to create the Pledge’s 8th cohort.

Existing Pledge organisations include a diverse range of companies including EY, Royal Bank of Scotland, BGF, University of Strathclyde, RBC Brewin Dolphin, AccelerateHer, BTO and Ooni, as the total number of Pledge partners reaches the 50 mark, with over 100 active Pledges.

Ana Stewart said: “As well as making strides in Scotland, the Pathways Pledge is now gaining momentum across the UK and internationally. The Pledge gives organisations across industries, large or small, young or old, the ability to commit to actions whilst learning and collaborating with others.

“The fact that we’re becoming a beacon outside our own borders is more than we could have wished for when we started out on this journey.”

Pledges made by the latest cohort include Barclays Scotland deepening its relationship-led support for female founders through new drop-in clinics, and Venture Café Edinburgh hosting global virtual events in partnership with other Venture Cafés around the world.

The Ventures Lab has also committed to helping five female-led ventures become investment-ready, with the aim of unlocking up to £2 million in related investment funding over the next 12 months. Meanwhile, Cruinn Consulting will host at least one stereotype-challenging speaker event bringing together professionals from non-traditional career paths.

Ana Stewart added: “We are excited to welcome our new Pledge members as we also reflect on how impactful the Pledge has been across our Pledge alumni.”

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Nathalie Cutting, Relationship Director at Barclays UK, said: “Barclays is proud to be part of the Pathways Forward cohort, supporting the next generation of female entrepreneurs across Scotland. Through this initiative, we’re committed to helping remove barriers to growth and ensuring more women have access to the networks, capital and confidence needed to scale their businesses.“

The date has also been announced for the third annual Female Founder Growth Summit, which will take place in Edinburgh on Thursday 1st October. Pathways Forward is partnering with Superscalers, The ScaleUp Institute and Buy Women Built to bring the UK’s high-growth female entrepreneurs together to connect, learn and accelerate business growth.