Career Ready and Permira

We’ve been working with Permira since 2020 to inspire the next generation of young talent to reach their full potential.

Career Ready and Permira

We’ve been working with Permira since 2020 to inspire the next generation of young talent to reach their full potential.

About our partnership

We’ve built a strong relationship over the years, starting with Permira providing funding and some volunteering, to them becoming a holistic, strategic-level partner with full programme engagement and core funding. The partnership has enabled us to support young people as they progress through the programme and maximise our impact at every level.

Our partnership to date has been one of growth and progress, working closely with the team at all levels of the organisation to help them achieve their goals. Not only this, a great number of Permirans have been able to engage with Career Ready as mentors, internship supervisors and more, learning and developing themselves at the same time. We’re looking forward to what the future holds.”

Richard Sanders, Partner at Permira and Career Ready trustee

volunteering hours

young people supported

paid internships provided

volunteer mentors

volunteering hours

young people supported

paid internships provided

volunteer mentors

What we’ve achieved together

First steps into the working world

A key part of the Career Ready programme is giving young people an insight into the world of work, bridging the gap between school and their careers and giving them access to opportunities. It’s this experience that doesn’t just familiarise them with the professional world, but also shows them what they’re capable of achieving.

Each year, ‘Permirans’ regularly engage with our work, hosting young people for their paid internships, delivering masterclasses and taking part in our year-long mentoring programme – empowering young people with the skills they need to build a successful future.

My internship with Permira was absolutely incredible. It helped me develop so many skills and gain a huge amount of knowledge. Despite being a bit nervous, I’ve managed to practise my presenting skills which has been really useful. I’ve also developed my networking and communicating skills around the office – every single person at Permira was on hand to offer advice. Thanks to Permira I am now an aspiring investment professional.

William Davies, Bexhill College and intern at Permira, 2022, who is now completing an apprenticeship with J.P. Morgan

We thoroughly enjoyed having an intern from Career Ready join the Finance team last year. Her exceptional capabilities and engaging demeaner contributed significantly to our team, and it was a pleasure to witness the remarkable growth in her confidence and financial knowledge during this time. The whole team appreciated the positive experience working together and would highly encourage more students to make the most of this kind of experience and exposure in the future.

Hamir Gadhvi, Permira Finance Associate and internship supervisor

Championing social mobility

Since the beginning of our partnership, Permira has shown passion and dedication to supporting the work we do, across both holistic engagement and core funding. Whether it’s taking on challenge fundraising campaigns, purchasing tables in support of our annual awards ceremony, inviting our CEO and alumni to speak at Permira events, or generously donating to support our alumni network, the team has always advocated for our work.

In 2023, the Permira team cycled 90km from London to Brighton, raising vital funds and awareness to help us change young lives through the Career Ready programme.

Strategic pro bono support for Career Ready

Permira has generously given us pro bono support that’s helped us streamline and define our strategic approach at Career Ready, and in particular, working with the Advanced Data Analytics team to uncover valuable insights that inform our approach. For example, we launched our “Balanced Scorecard” project to better understand the value of our partnerships, which has enabled us to offer transparent impact and value measures for partners and maximise the strength of our relationships.

Richard Sanders, a Permira Partner, also serves on our Board of Trustees, offering invaluable insights and guidance to our senior management team.

“It has been a true pleasure to partner with Career Ready over the last three years. Social mobility is a core focus area for The Permira Foundation, and we’re proud to support the work that Career Ready is doing to empower talented young people and give them the tools and exposure they need to succeed in their careers.”