Reports

The State of Social Enterprise Report 2015, supported by Santander, is the most comprehensive research undertaken into the state of the sector. This report shows that social enterprises in the UK are thriving, outperforming their mainstream SME counterparts in nearly every area of business: turnover growth, workforce growth, job creation, innovation, business optimism, and start-up rates. The findings show that in a time of public sector austerity and globally networked markets, social enterprises are providing real answers to the significant social and environmental problems we face.

Figures published in ‘The People’s Business’ revealed a thriving social enterprise sector in the UK, attracting a wave of entrepreneurs and out-performing mainstream business. This report was supported by the Royal Bank of Scotland Group.

Government bodies at a local and national level have outsourced public services, often purchasing them from private companies. This report, published in 2012, highlighted the real risks of the development of a ‘shadow state’ where a small number of companies can build up large and complex stakes in public service markets, leading to them being potentially able to wield disproportionate control while being held to limited accountability and transparency.

The key findings of the 2011 State of Social Enterprise survey showed that the social enterprise sector is dynamic, attracting entrepreneurs, working in the UK’s most deprived communities and tackling the root causes of deprivation. As a sector social enterprises were shown to be both out-pacing and out-innovating comparable SMEs.