Transcript Social Enterprise in Devon

Social Enterprise Seminar
Devon County Council
20 March 2009
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Why am I here?
Specialist ‘Social Enterprise’ Adviser
Director of three enterprises
ceu ltd
RISE Wessex Reinvestment Trust
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What are social enterprises?
Definition by DTI (BERR)
“Social enterprises are businesses with primarily social
objectives whose surpluses are principally reinvested for
that purpose in the business or in the community, rather
than being driven by the need to maximise profit for
shareholders and owners”.
Social enterprise = a trading organisation with a social
purpose
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Plunkett Foundation
Social enterprise – wide range of organisations
that achieve a variety of social aims by trading in
goods and services
They are NOT – investor-led enterprises or
voluntary organisations
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Business and Social Outcomes
 Trading activity or contracting to deliver services
 Running a business that has financial viability
 Clear social outcomes
 Responsive to the communities in which they operate
 Distribution of profit for social as well as business purposes
 A triple-bottom line; financial, social and environmental
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Types of social enterprise
 Co-operatives
- organisations which are owned and controlled by their members
- worker co-operative the employees own and control the business
 Community Businesses
- businesses which are owned and controlled by a community
- could be a geographical community or ‘a community of interest’
 Development Trusts
- asset based organisations owned and controlled by the community
- often have a range of projects under one umbrella
 Trading subsidiaries
- the trading arm of a Charity or Trust
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Community Interest Company (CIC)
 Introduced in July 2005 as new type of social enterprise
 Statutory “asset lock” to prevent asset and profit distribution
except for community purpose
 Must operate for the benefit of the community and pass a
Community Interest Test
 Has limited liability, with shares or guarantee
 Must be able to demonstrate community benefit to new CICs
regulator (through eg. social accounting)
 2,578 registered as of yesterday!
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The national picture
 More than 55,000 social enterprises nationally and rising (DTI
2006)
 Combined turnover of £27bn per year and contribute £8.4bn
every year to UK economy
 1.3% of total turnover of all businesses with employees
 Average number of employees 10.
 11% of social enterprises have 50 – 249 employees
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Snapshot of Devon
255 Social Enterprises on the RISE database
comprising
14 Social Enterprise Charities
28 Community Interest Companies
 65 Co-ops
10 Credit Unions
11 Development Trusts
 24 Industrial & Provident Societies & 3 Social
Firms
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Some you may know of..
 COSMIC
 Proper Job
 Gt Torrington Dev Trust
 Devon Doctors
 Mid Devon Community
Recycling
 Pluss
 Exeter Credit Union
 Magic Carpet
and further afield..
 Greenwich Leisure
 Eden Project
 Coin Street Builders
 SOFA project
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Benefits they deliver..
Tackling disadvantage, reducing social exclusion
Creating employment, often in difficult areas
Meeting social needs, developing sustainable
solutions
Improving public services – closeness to
communities
Encouraging efficient markets and corporate
responsibility
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Benefits they deliver..
Facilitating new markets
Empowering individuals and communities
Access to finance
Important partners for local authorities and
agencies
Flexibility that other sectors may not have
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Social Enterprise Mark
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