What’s so special about social enterprise?

I have been a champion of social enterprise for many years now.  I have worked very closely with social entrepreneurs, social businesses and social policy makers since the turn of the millenium.  I have also created and delivered some of the first postgraduate academic materials on social enterprise here in the UK.  So I have a fair amount invested in the subject personally and professionally.  Suffice it to say that I feel strongly that social entrepreneurship and its enterprise vehicles have made and will continue to make substantive positive contributions to communities and the lives of citizens of around the globe.

But what do others think?  Data published by the UK government claims that there are approximately 60,000 social enterprises in the UK, contributing £27bn annually to the economy.  What’s more, these social enterprises have helped to create nearly 1 million jobs.  These are not insignificant contributions, and they do not take into account the social and environmental benefits these organisations will  have created.

Social entrepreneurship is certainly not a new concept, but the UK government’s recognition of social enterprise as a valued socio-economic driver is very recent.  The DTI released its “Strategy for Succcess” in 2002, and the sector has appeared to grow and develop ever since.  Many believe that periods of economic recession and stagnation provide additional evidence of the social sector’s potential.  Have the recent crises in banking and credit been products of a flawed and failing business model built around assumptions of perpetual growth, even as global resources become increasingly scarce?  And does social and environmental enterprise provide a basis for a more sustainable business model based on preserving resources, building social capital and creating real value in more than just financial terms?

My friend and colleague Nigel Lowthrop, founder of Hill Holt Wood, an environmental social enterprise in Lincolnshire, believes that sustainable enterprise models are the way forward.  In fact, his vision is that “by the middle of the 21st century, the social enterprise model will be seen as the way to do business”.  What do you all think?  Can this vision of local, national and global economies driven by social and environmental businesses really become a reality, or do we simply have too much invested in the private and public sectors to ever let this happen?

I welcome your thoughts.

Chris

Hi everyone!

Looking forward to chatting with you all about entrepreneurship specifically and business in general. I’m new to Word Press, so be gentle with me. Or not!