UK Social Enterprise Awards 2026
Each year, the UK Social Enterprise Awards shine a powerful spotlight on the pioneering organisations transforming lives and communities across the country. This year, the Awards are back but with a difference.
For the first time, we’re taking the celebrations out of London and are heading to a city with a deep connection to the social enterprise movement and the fight for social justice – Manchester!
The UK Social Enterprise Awards 2026 will take place on 12 November and will be co-produced with Co-operatives UK, the network for the nation’s co-operatives and a vital organisation in the push for a better way of doing business.
Following on from last year’s ‘Festival of Hope’, this year’s theme will be ‘All Together Now’, capturing the spirit of unity, co-operation and community that is at the heart of our network.
As societal division is on the ascendancy, the Awards will be a call for unity and practical collaboration – celebrating the inspiring organisations that are showing us that strong community ties overcome division and that another, better way of doing business is possible.
Could your business be one of this year’s stars?
Entering the Awards is more than just a chance to win. It’s an opportunity to elevate your story, celebrate your team’s achievements, and showcase your impact to a national audience. Applications close on 12 July 2026.
APPLY NOW!
Awards categories
Across every corner of the economy, social enterprises are transforming lives and reshaping the future – from small community-run ventures to high-impact public service providers, B2B businesses to mission-led consumer brands.
That’s why this year’s 15 award categories, including the new category, the Co-operative of the Year, have been carefully curated to honour the breadth, diversity, and brilliance of the social enterprise and co-operative movements – from bold new start-ups to established organisations delivering sustained impact year after year.
The Awards also spotlight those who champion the sector. The ‘Buy Social’ Market Builder Award recognises organisations helping social enterprises to grow and thrive, and the Social Investment Deal of the Year celebrates an investment deal that has driven real, measurable change.
How to apply
This year, the application process has been further streamlined to make it easier for time-strapped social enterprises and co-operatives to enter. There’s more focus on impact and less on submitting supporting documents at the initial stage, and you could even send us a video or audio entry – whatever works best for you!
Each category has its own specific criteria, and you can enter a maximum of three. If you’ve been a previous Awards winner (congratulations!), you cannot enter a category you have won over the last two years.
Winners will be chosen by a distinguished panel of judges – a stellar line-up of sector leaders, past winners, academics, social investors, and business pioneers.
Why Manchester and why now?
In 1844 in Rochdale, near Manchester, a group of artisans working in the cotton mills fought to tackle the awful working conditions and low wages they and their fellow workers faced. They pooled their resources and opened the first-ever consumer co-operative, providing everyday essentials at an affordable price. The Rochdale Pioneers created a new model of doing business based on ownership and profit sharing – the co-operative movement was born.
Since then, Greater Manchester has been at the heart of it, and there’s no better place to celebrate co-operation over division and unity over hate than in the city that’s been so central to the social enterprise story.
This year’s ceremony will take place at New Century Hall in the city’s Co-operative Quarter, a venue full of live music memories from Hendrix and the Stones to the Madchester era!
Tickets will go on sale shortly, watch this space!
A truly UK-wide celebration
We are pleased to be working with Cwmpas, Social Enterprise Northern Ireland and Social Enterprise Scotland to deliver the Awards.
If your organisation is situated in Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales, please apply directly to your national awards in the relevant category. Winners of these categories will then be sent to be shortlisted for the overall UK Awards.
If your social enterprise is applying for the Northern Irish, Scottish or Welsh awards, please note that the UK Awards contain additional categories not covered by individual national awards, so please do check our categories to see which works best for you
Support the movement as an Awards sponsor
The awards are an evening of many impact stories where founders, teams, patrons, buyers and policymakers come together to celebrate businesses that make purpose practical. If your organisation would like to align itself with this growing movement of mission-driven businesses, we have a range of sponsorship opportunities available.
By becoming a sponsor, you will enhance your brand by benefiting from the wide reach of both partners and give a national stage for your business to stand with the hundreds of innovators working tirelessly to prove that ownership, procurement, governance, social value and community wealth can be built into the way business works.
If you’d like to find out more email sarah.burns@socialenterprise.org.uk
Meet last year’s winners
Joy, unity, hope and resistance – these were the themes of last year’s Festival of Hope, and the winners really showed how these attributes are at the heart of the social enterprise sector.
From creating life-changing jobs for people experiencing homelessness or leaving prison to supporting those affected by conflict, delivering people-powered public services to breaking down barriers to access – these businesses show the power of social enterprises in tackling some of the biggest challenges we face in ways which are innovative, entrepreneurial and rooted in communities.
Find out more about the social enterprises that won at the UK Social Enterprise Awards 2025.
The UK Social Enterprise Awards 2026 are brought to you by Social Enterprise UK and Co-operatives UK
Our current UK Social Enterprise Awards sponsors