The total value of social investments rose by £1.5bn last year, latest figures show.
Data from the social investment wholesaler Big Society Capital, published yesterday, shows the value of outstanding social investment in the UK was just under £9.4bn at the end of 2022.
BSC said investment in social and affordable housing made up £5.1bn of the total after a 35 per cent rise compared with the previous year.
Social lending including bank, non-bank and charity bonds was up 6 per cent to £3.5bn.
BSC said the reasons for the increase included a rise in government statutory funding for areas such as social housing and the likelihood that social investment would provide resilient returns.
The total social impact investment has increased more than tenfold since 2011, when it was valued at £833m.
Stephen Muers, chief executive of BSC, said: “The continued growth in social investment in this challenging environment is welcome and demonstrates an increasing investor appetite for creating positive change to people’s lives.
“But evidence shows that significantly larger amounts of private capital are badly needed to help tackle social problems.
“The time is now for the government to build on this British success story and help unlock social impact investment at a much greater scale – without spending a penny more.”
The survey highlights that “investment is increasingly reaching the areas that need it most – with 82 per cent of organisations receiving social lending based outside London; and 62 per cent targeted at the UK’s most deprived communities according to the index of multiple deprivation”.
In 2022, £1.8bn was committed across 1,310 investments in projects that deliver measurable social impact, such as affordable homes, community food banks and tech startups tackling mental health.
Lucy Frazer, the culture secretary, said:“Social impact investing attracts private investment to deliver measurable outcomes for a public good.
“This government has championed this approach so that we can leverage more funding to kickstart innovative projects.
“Through social outcomes partnerships and the Dormant Assets Scheme the government has played a pivotal role in growing the market.
“Reaching this landmark of £9bn shows that social impact investment works for both investors and those that need it most.”
Big Society Capital’s funding comes from English dormant bank accounts and investment from Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and NatWest Group.