The purpose of this
report is to inform the reader about social enterprise. Social enterprises are businesses
that trade to tackle social problems, improve communities, people’s life
chances, or the environment. They make their money from selling goods and
services in the open market, but they reinvest their profits back into the
business or the local community. And so when they profit, society profits.
What makes a company a social enterprise?
The term
‘social enterprise’ came about from recognition that in the UK and across the
world, there were organisations using the power of business to bring about
social and environmental change without a single term to unite them.
Since the term
started being more widely used in the mid 1990s, there has been a lot of
discussion and sometimes confusion about what social enterprise is. At
Social Enterprise UK we feel we must be clear but pragmatic when it comes to defining
social enterprise. Here are what we believe are the characteristics
of a social enterprise.
SOCIAL ENTERPRISES
SHOULD:
·
Have a clear social and/or environmental mission set out in their
governing documents
·
Generate the majority of their income through trade
·
Reinvest the majority of their profits
·
Be autonomous of state
·
Be majority controlled in the interests of the social mission
·
Be accountable and transparent
The rise and popularity
of Social Enterprise
Social enterprises are becoming an increasingly
popular business model and some such as The Big Issue, Café Direct and the
Fifteen-restaurant chain run by Jamie Oliver enjoy high profile success.
There are around 55,000 social enterprises
across the UK with 1 in 5 businesses in London being a social enterprise;
mainly located in urban areas.
What is required
legally?
A Community Interest Company (CIC) is a limited
company, with special additional features, created for the use of people who
want to conduct a business or other activity for community benefit, and not
purely for private advantage.
Available Funding
