[cma-l] Minister: "Social enterprise can blaze a trail through tough economic times"

[CMA-L]

Amid the vibrant hubbub of Social Enterprise Day, the Government today
backed social enterprise as the model to show how business with a
conscience can be done. The Minister for the Third Sector, Kevin
Brennan, spent the day experiencing the energy and innovation of the
social enterprise movement.

Setting out new milestones in government policy, he said:

"This government, from the Prime Minister down, is passionate in its
enthusiasm for the social enterprise movement. As everyone starts to
feel the effects of the global financial crisis it is clear that there
is a growing market place for alternative business models, which hold
social and environmental value to be every bit as important as
financial gain.

"The action research projects we are announcing today show
cross-government support for social enterprise. Our work on Social
Return on Investment will create new momentum for third sector
organisations to prove how effective they are."

At the "Blazing A Trail" lunch reception for social entrepreneurs and
young people whose lives have been transformed by social enterprise,
held at the Cabinet Office's Admiralty House, the Minister announced:

* Four brand new action research projects by departments across
government are to be funded by the Office of the Third Sector in the
Cabinet Office to the tune of £740,000 over three years. The projects
will galvanise government action to test social enterprise solutions
to the challenges we face.

Departments involved are: The Department of Health (DH), the
Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform (BERR), the
National Offenders Management Service (NOMS) and the Department for
Communities and Local Government (DCLG.

* A new project to help measure social value in a way that everyone
can understand. It is aimed at making social return on investment
(SROI) accessible, affordable and a well understood route for
articulating the social value organisations create. This should to
help everyone involved to make better decisions. A consortium led by
SROI UK has been appointed to carry out the three-year project, which
will run alongside a complementary project funded by the Scottish
Government.

* The results of two successful pilots which showed that investors are
willing to consider the social and environmental implications of their
investments. The work suggests a way forward to a marketplace where
both investors and the firms in which they invest understand products
capturing social as well as financial returns.

At the end of a full day spent taking in a diverse range of events
designed to raise the profile of social enterprise, the Minister
commented:

"Social Enterprise Day has been tiring but tremendous fun. At South
Bank Mosaics in south London, I have seen how the homeless and those
who have been in prison can re-engage with society through a social
enterprise that creates amazing public artworks. I have met young
people from the inner city facing a prosperous, fulfilling future
because Sam Conniff at Livity or Tokunbo Ajasa-Oluwa at Catch-22
showed faith in them. The evening I spent in conversation with those
who have the money and the will to make all of this happen, discussing
how they can find young entrepreneurs with the ideas and energy to
match, and how the value of their investment could be measured.

"All in all, this has been an inspirational day. Economic and
financial uncertainty present challenges to us all, but more than ever
our country needs social enterprise to blaze a trail. There are
opportunities for those with the ideas, drive and courage to put the
good of society alongside the benefit to themselves."

Communities Secretary Hazel Blears said:

"Social enterprises make a huge difference to our communities. As we
enter tougher economic times, they are more important than ever.

"That's why I'm making sure that my department does all it can to
support them, open new opportunities and help them grow."

Secretary of State for Business, Peter Mandelson said:

"Increasingly young entrepreneurs are looking beyond the balance sheet
and establishing enterprises with a conscience that directly benefits
their communities.

"UK social enterprise already contributes £8.4bn each year to our GDP
and it is a sector which is steadily growing."

Notes to Editors

1. The Office of the Third Sector is part of the Cabinet Office that
deals with Government policy on charities, voluntary organisations and
social enterprise. More information can be found at
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov .uk/third_sector

2. Sam Conniff and Tokunbo Ajasa-Oluwa are Social Enterprise
Ambassadors. See http://www.socialenterpriseamb assadors.com for more.

3. Most recent estimates suggest there are at least 55,000 social
enterprises in the UK, contributing 8.4 billion to the UK's GDP and
employing at least 650,000 people (2005 Small Business Survey - BERR)

4. Action Research: In the Final Report of the Third Sector Review,
OTS committed to support other government departments in undertaking
action research geared towards developing their understanding the role
social enterprise can play in helping them meet their strategic
objectives.

Following a process of project development with departments, OTS is
today announcing the first four projects. These projects are funding
by OTS, but developed and led by departments. A key outcome will be
that departments develop their evidence base. Projects are:

* Department of Health will be supporting five of six social
enterprises delivering mainstream health care to undertake social
return on investment assessments. These will help articulate more
clearly the impact these social enterprises in economic, environmental
and social terms.

* Communities and Local Government will be examining the potential of
community share and bond issues to stimulate social enterprise
activity, promote community empowerment and attract private sector
investment.

* The National Offender Management Service will be
scoping Social Enterprise activity within probation settings. Focusing
on quality indicators and sustainability of projects and "what works",
the project will establish progression routes for new, developing, and
established social enterprise models operating in the criminal justice
sector and contributing to reducing re-offending.

Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform will be working with
Community Development Finance Institutions to explore different
approaches to increasing their sustainability.

5. The OTS Measuring Social Value project will be taken forward over
2008-2011 and will build on current work around impact measurement and
aims to:

* Standardise the approach to using Social Return On Investment

* Increase the accessibility of SROI for social investors and third
sector organisations

* Develop a network of practitioners who will raise awareness of SROI
and social reporting

* Increase the evidence base of the impact of the third sector

* Enable social enterprises and other third sector organisations to
prove the social value they create

* Support social investors and commissioners of public services to
make more intelligent investment or purchasing decisions

6. The project will be run by a consortium led by SROI UK, with New
Philanthropy Capital, Charities Evaluation Service, New Economics
Foundation and National Council for Voluntary Organisations as
members.

The contractor will be working with investors, grant makers and
commissioners, those who are involved in the measuring social value
world and with the third sector, to ensure that SROI becomes an
accessible, affordable and well understood route for articulating the
social value they create. The complementary project being run by the
Scottish Government will, in particular, have responsibility for the
development of a SROI portal and of new training materials for
practitioners.

7. In 2007, The Office of the Third Sector invested in two social
investment pilots with the objective of increasing private sector
finance in social enterprises, deepening understanding of how to
increase the range of finance available for social enterprises and
successfully broadening the research base of the sector. Their
outcomes are announced today:

* Charity Bank was awarded £100,000 to carry out action research into
the market appetite for and availability of investment from the demand
and supply side. The programme was undertaken jointly with the
advisory firm, Investing for Good. Its work centred upon Yorkshire and
Humber although interviews were also held in London and other
locations. Outcomes of the pilot include 3 infrastructure and product
development projects already under way, which will introduce new
investment into the social enterprise sector.

* Communities Innovation UK led the other (Equity Plus pilot) aiming
to create the UK's first social business angel network, alongside an
investment readiness support service. Outcomes of the project include
provision of education and advice to over 35 social enterprises, and
approximately £800,000 of new private investment into the sector, with
other deals in development.

Cabinet Office Press Office 22 Whitehall LONDON SW1A 2WH
Tel: 020 7276 0317
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk