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13 May 2009

May 13 2009

 

 

Social Enterprise Coalition responds to yesterday's Social Enterprise Summit between Government and social enterprise leaders

 

Responding to yesterday's Social Enterprise Summit, Jonathan Bland, Chief Executive of the Social Enterprise Coalition said: "The summit was a positive and productive meeting between Government ministers and social enterprise leaders, and a welcome opportunity to work together to join up different government departments' agendas on social enterprise.

 

"We firmly believe that social enterprises are essential to building a truly balanced and diverse economy; one that is flourishing, sustainable, and committed at its core to the well-being of its communities and the environment." 

 

Bland continued: "We are calling for £100 million of investment for communities to acquire land or buildings and transform them into social enterprises that can anchor wealth and create jobs locally.  Social enterprises have a long and proven track record in asset ownership and the recession provides a once in a generation opportunity for communities to take on land and buildings that could be used for positive and profitable purposes.

 

"We welcome the announcement on the Future Jobs Fund. In order to achieve a resilient economy social enterprise needs to be at the heart of the UK's business agenda; this Fund is a welcome step in that direction.  However, it is critical that the bidding process of the Fund is designed to be accessible to smaller social enterprises, who are often the best placed to reach the disadvantaged and those most removed from the labour market."

 

Finally, Bland said: "We welcome commitment from the Government for social enterprise to play a greater role in the economy and to create better conditions for social enterprises to thrive in and grow. We will work alongside the social enterprise movement to ensure that yesterday's Summit has a real impact."

For full summit wrap up click here.

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Notes to editors:

  • The Social Enterprise Summit was held May 12 at Coin Street Communities builders and was co-hosted by Lord Mandelson, Secretary of State for the Dept. Of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and Liam Byrne, Minister for the Cabinet Office; and attended by Hazel Blears, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and James Purnell, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions as well as a number of social enterprise leaders.

 

 

  • The Social Enterprise Coalition is the UK's national body for social enterprise. As the voice for the sector, the Coalition provides a platform for showcasing the benefits of social enterprise while supporting and representing the work of its varied members, influencing national policy and promoting best practice. http://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/

 

  • According to Government figures there are approximately 60,000 social enterprises in the UK with a combined turnover of £27billion per year.Social enterprises account for 5% of all businesses with employees and contribute £8.4billion per year to the UK economy - almost 1% of annual GDP.

 

  • Well known examples of social enterprises include The Big Issue, Divine Chocolate and Jamie Oliver's Fifteen, but there are many other social enterprises operating in a wide range of industries from transport and recycling to education, retail and health.

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