Nominet Trust and Founders Forum For Good have announced the launch of a Social Tech, Social Change fund to provide finance for entreneurs with tech-based business ideas which contribute to tackling the country's pressing social issues.
The £1m fund will help the development of up to 20 ventures which offer innovative technology-based ideas addressing issues such as the environment, social inequality, unemployment and an ageing population.
CEO of Nominet Trust, Annika Small, said: "The UK's digital economy is thriving, contributing more than eight per cent of the UK's GDP. The talented individuals behind this industry have fundamentally changed the way we communicate, work, learn and shop.
"The Social Tech, Social Change fund has been created to make it easier for more ideas to get early funding and support the transformation of ideas into everyday tool that can be used to improve the lives of some of our least fortunate.
"We are just at the start of a journey tech for social good and companies like Big White Wall, Cybermentors, Apps for Good and CodeClub are first class examples of what great work can be achieved on a global scale."
The initiative is supported by the board of recently created Founders Forum For Good - a spin off from the Founders Forum, founded eight years ago to provide invitation-only digital sector events - including Martha Lane Fox, Jimmy Wales, Jonathan Goodwin, Mike Lynch and Brent Hoberman of Lastminute.com and Mydeco.com, who said he was "delighted" to be involved.
Interested entrepreneurs can apply for a grant from the fund until September and find out more on the website.