The venture capital arm of the Big Issue – a self-styled “social merchant bank” – has taken a leap forward with a £4m contribution towards its latest £10m fund from HSBC.

Big Issue Invest, which directs funding to socially responsible businesses, now has total committed capital of £8m, with Deutsche Bank also among the fund’s backers, alongside more traditional supporters.

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Simon Cowell’s favourite songwriter, Emeli Sandé, talks about growing up in a mixed-race family in rural England and Scotland, why education is the key to everything and why “feminism” is redundant... Also in this week's Big Issue: Why are we doping up a generation? The debate on medication for children... Peter Capaldi, aka Malcolm Tucker from top TV comedy The Thick Of It, admits that he was a total geek at school in Letter To My Younger Self... Columnist Rachel Johnson talks flesh and Freud... Friends star Helen Baxendale in the Screen Q&A... Plus Street Lights, competitions, and all the usual news, reviews and culture...  

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