About The Melting Pot
The Melting Pot is a social enterprise headed by Claire Carpenter, an eco-social entrepreneur with over 15 years experience of working within the more-than-profit sector in Scotland. Claire envisaged The Melting Pot as an incubator for new and emerging social initiatives – a place to plant seeds, branch out, get together and grow.
At its core, The Melting Pot is an inspiring place to work, meet and bring ideas to life – a place where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
A Brief History of The Melting Pot
Claire saw the need for The Melting Pot all around her in the form of lots of talented, dedicated individuals and social entrepreneurs working – often “under the radar” – on great projects, but without the support and resources they needed on a personal as well as professional level. This could mean anything from being unable to access a printer that works, to having someone nearby to encourage, advise or congratulate them, signpost business and funding opportunities, or just to have a cup of tea with! Her belief is that, as social animals, it’s who we know as well as what we know that makes things happen.
Claire wanted to help break down the traditional thematic silos in which we often work, such as health, environment, regeneration and community. By providing flexible access to a well-resourced open space, a special place is created to facilitate a meeting of minds, skills and knowledge. This helps enhance our understanding and impact, allows for collaboration, and helps us work more effectively on our own projects. After being inspired by seeing how similar enterprises, such as The Hub in London, could work, Claire set about bringing her vision of a similar enterprise in Edinburgh to life.
Starting in September 2005, Claire began recruiting supporters and volunteers to turn the idea into a reality. Together the new team wrote business plans, undertook market research and feasibility studies, and applied for start-up funding. In January 2006, The Melting Pot received a grant from Scotland Unlimited and, over the next three years, this was followed by funding from Big Lottery, the Voluntary Action Fund, private donors, the Scottish Community Foundation, the Scottish Government and the Tudor Trust.
In March 2007, Claire found out about the perfect space in central Edinburgh – in a building soon to be owned by the Ethical Property Company. On October 1st, 2007, after two years and more than 2,000 volunteer hours spent researching and working on the project (including an epic 10-day eco-friendly office outfit), The Melting Pot finally opened its doors in the heart of Edinburgh.
Company structure
The Melting Pot is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee. This means we are classified as a social enterprise, with the aim of being self-sufficient in the long-term through trading rather than relying on grants funding. Our assets are locked into delivering the core business and meeting our aims – to inspire and support social innovators to realise their ideas for a better world.
After starting life as a volunteer-run project, The Melting Pot is now run by a small group of employed operational staff. Volunteers are still involved on the management team and board, and in delivering smaller operational projects such as redeveloping this website.
We are always looking for new volunteers with the right skills and passion to help take us forward. See Volunteer Opportunities for more details or call us to discuss what you have to offer.