Request for Applications: Acumen Fellowship Programme (United Kingdom)

The Acumen UK Fellowship is a 9-month hybrid program for social entrepreneurs and leaders across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Offered by Acumen Academy, it supports founders, CEOs, and senior leaders to strengthen leadership and deepen organizational impact while tackling systemic challenges underlying poverty. Applications close on 3 November 2026 (deadline time and time zone not specified in the source). Acumen Academy describes the Acumen UK Fellowship as a program for ambitious builders grounded in “moral imagination,” focused on solving problems of poverty. The Fellowship accompanies social entrepreneurs and leaders to strengthen both the “hard skills” needed to scale solutions to poverty and the “harder skills” required to lead a reimagining of a better world. The United Kingdom Acumen Fellowship is designed for social entrepreneurs and leaders across the UK who have a proven organizational model, demonstrated meaningful impact, and the ambition to take their impact to the next level and influence the systems around their work. This Fellowship is not described as a grant with a cash award in the provided source. Instead, the program provides leadership development, cohort support, and community. Key benefits and support described include: The source also describes additional Foundry opportunities, including: The source provides the following eligibility requirements for applicants: Additional clarification included in the source: The Fellowship is for leaders tackling poverty-related challenges in the UK. The source specifically mentions pressing issues including: The curriculum and leadership practices are also described as supporting fellows to navigate growth and systemic challenges, but the excerpt does not list additional sector-specific priority areas beyond the poverty-related themes above. Acumen frames the Fellowship around a leadership challenge that often emerges as impact grows: the bottleneck is “rarely just the model,” and leadership decisions become harder as organizations scale. The program is structured to help fellows strengthen leadership practices needed for growth, including: The Fellowship also emphasizes peer learning through a cohort of leaders navigating similar questions, and it continues through the Foundry community after the 9-month program. The source provides the following application process and dates:

Official application page: Use the “Apply now” button on the official Acumen UK Fellowship page: https://fellowship.acumenacademy.org/uk

Info sessions (Zoom): The source lists three info sessions:

The excerpt does not specify time zones. Q: What is the Acumen UK Fellowship? The Acumen UK Fellowship is a 9-month hybrid fellowship for social entrepreneurs and leaders across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, focused on strengthening leadership and organizational impact to tackle systemic challenges underlying poverty. Q: When do applications close? Applications close on 3 November 2026. The source does not specify the deadline time or time zone. Q: What is the program duration and schedule? The Fellowship is 9 months, with the source stating it runs February to October 2027. It includes three 4-day in-person immersives and two 5-week virtual workshop series. Q: Who can apply? Applicants must lead an organization creating measurable impact solving problems of poverty in the UK, have at least 5 years of work experience, lead an organization with a clear track record of social impact and an established legal entity, and be fully available for the entire program. Q: Does the program provide funding or a cash grant? The provided source does not describe a cash award. It states that UK Acumen Academy covers program costs, including lodging and food for the in-person immersives. Q: Where is the Fellowship delivered? It is a hybrid program with virtual sessions and in-person immersives held at different locations in the UK. Q: What happens after the Fellows Program ends? After completing the Fellows Program, fellows join the Foundry, Acumen’s global community of more than 2,000 social innovators across 71 countries. Review the official Acumen UK Fellowship page and the Application Toolkit referenced in the application process to confirm all requirements and submission details. Then follow the stated online application steps within the 22 September 2026 to 3 November 2026 window, ensuring you can participate fully throughout the program schedule.