Start-up social enterprises for health or social care are offered grants of between £50,000 and £450,000 in a new capital grants scheme initiated by the Social Enterprise Investment Fund on behalf of the Department of Health.

Social enterprises are invited to apply before Monday 1 November to take advantage of the scheme for refurbishment of buildings, purchasing physical assets such as computers or to cover professional fees relating to the expansion projects such as architects or surveyors.

The Social Investment Business chief executive Jonathan Lewis (pictured) said: “We know there is a lot of demand in the social enterprise sector for this kind of capital grant. Since June last year we have provided SEIF investments totaling more than £23m to over 140 fantastic local organisations working in health and social care which have helped them become stronger and more sustainable and ultimately able to help more people.”

The fund is particularly keen to encourage carers organisations, user-led organisations, organisations dealing with long-term or dementia care and social care “spin outs” to apply. Those applying must be able to demonstrate that they want to grow and improve their long term sustainability and must be capable of using the funding by 31 March 2011.