Common Ventures is a London-based early-stage venture capital firm backing pre-seed founders from state-educated and immigrant backgrounds in the UK. The firm grew out of Social Mobility Ventures, a community for state-educated founders, operators, and investors launched in early 2025.
Common Ventures invests at the pre-seed stage in founders selected for the journey they've been on rather than their pedigree, addressing a documented drop-off in state-educated founder representation between the stealth and pre-seed stages (from roughly 40% to 25%, per the firm's own research).
The firm also runs Common People, a 1,500+ member community of state-educated founders, investors, and operators, and Common Path, a startup-readiness programme that places graduate cohorts of 15-20 into startup roles, backed by Atomico, Phoenix Court, the Hg Foundation, and the Sutton Trust.
Common Ventures Fund I launched in 2026, backed by the British Business Bank as a cornerstone investor through the Bank's Investor Pathways Capital initiative.
Common Ventures was one of 10 first-time fund managers selected for the programme's Microfunds cohort, which collectively spans fund sizes of £10 million to £20 million; Common Ventures' specific fund size within that range has not been individually disclosed.
The fund evolved out of Social Mobility Ventures, a community launched in early 2025 for state-educated founders, operators, and investors, later rebranded Common Ventures.
LPs are anchored by the British Business Bank; the initiative is designed to crowd in additional private capital alongside the Bank's cornerstone commitment, though the full LP roster has not been publicly disclosed.
Leadership
David Houghton is Co-founder, focused on backing pre-seed founders. He grew up in Leeds and attended Guiseley School, and currently invests in pre-seed founders at Antler alongside building Common Ventures.
Ryan Procter is Co-founder. He grew up in Manchester and attended Chorlton High School, and leads Marketing and Platform at Nauta alongside building Common Ventures.
Diellza Ramadani is Operations Lead, previously leading operations at Zinc VC for four years.
Investment Strategy
Common Ventures assesses founders on grit, resilience, and execution rather than educational or family pedigree, aiming to open pre-seed access to talent overlooked by traditional venture networks.
David Houghton — Co-founder
david@socialmobility.ventures
Ryan Procter — Co-founder
ryan@socialmobility.ventures
Diellza Ramadani — Operations Lead
diellza@socialmobility.ventures
United Kingdom
