Climate Week Derby and Derbyshire, March 21 st 2011 Developing Green Social Enterprise: The case of the East Midlands, UK Gordon Keay, Environmental Business Development Associate
Introduction What contribution can social enterprise make in the transition to a more sustainable/low carbon economy? 1. Setting the scene 2. The East Midlands 3. Case Studies 4. Emergent issues 5. Opportunities
Definitions Knowledge Transfer Partnerships partnerships between universities and businesses that utilise the knowledge, technology and skills that reside within the UK Social Enterprise East Midlands a community of social enterprises, social innovators, business support professionals and individuals, SEEM works to inspire, connect and support businesses trading to achieve social and environmental change Social Enterprise a business with primarily social/environmental objectives whose surpluses are reinvested for that purpose in the business or in the community, rather than being driven by the need to maximise profit for shareholders and owners
The differentiating factors Value led Asset lock owned by users, customers, employees, community, trustees etc. Profits not distributed privately Social and environmental returns Shared ownership and decision making Examples of social enterprise forms: Development Trusts, Co-operatives, Social Firms, Employee owned businesses
At what scale? Approx 55,000 social enterprise in the UK Famous examples Café Direct, Jamie Olivers restaurant Fifteen, The Eden Project, The Big Issue, The Co-operative Group, John Lewis Partnership According to recent government figures, social enterprises account for 5% of all businesses and contribute 8.4bn a year to the UK economy - almost 1% of annual GDP
A resilient business model State of Social Enterprise Survey 2009: Social enterprises are recession-busters Twice as confident of growth as SME s 56% have grown in last year compared to 28% of SMEs Less than 20% have seen turnover drop compared to 43% of SMEs
Markets Healthcare - East Midlands Community Dental Association Social Care - Shepshed Carers Education - Unique Social Enterprise Environmental services - Hill Holt Wood Construction and maintenance - Newlife Construction Arts & creative industries - Soft Touch Sports & leisure - Adrenalin Alley Financial services - Nottingham Credit Union Food and drink - The Healthy Hub Retail STRIDE Manufacturing - Brightkidz
Green social enterprise in East Midlands SEEM estimate the total number of social enterprises in the East Midlands to be 1,100 2010 study by SEEM and Middlesex University found 87 organisations seeking to respond to environmental issues 60% - recycling and resource recovery 49% - environmental education 36% - involved in local/organic food enterprise
Green social enterprise distribution Figure 1: Regional distribution of environmentally motivated social enterprises in the East Midlands Figure 2: Regional distribution by county Derbyshire 22 Leicestershire 20 Lincolnshire 5 Northamptonshire 8 Nottinghamshire 16 Total 71
Case study Hill Holt Wood Hill Holt Wood runs a successful business from a 34 acre woodland in Lincolnshire with a turnover of 830k They help young people to realise their potential, whilst generating products and services of value to the communities and promoting the cause of environmental sustainability Diversifying through a sustainable design consultancy developing eco-build projects and a neighbourhood retrofit scheme amongst other things
Case study Torrs Hydro Hydro electric scheme, founded in 2007 To regenerate the community and environmental sustainability of New Mills area Advance education around asset based community development and enterprises with a community or environmental focus An opportunity for people and organisations to contribute financially to the community
Emerging in Derbyshire A number of new environmental social enterprise start ups in Derbyshire Community supported agriculture Therapeutic horticulture Eco tourism
Lessons learned start small - gain experience and build a track record. research your market remember the dual challenge of meeting social aims AND developing a successful business aim to be independent - grants and public funding may be available to help get you started but become independent from these sources as the business develops work out what help you need and where you can get it you will need lots of different skills and energy to succeed build a network of business specialists and people who understand your objectives
Policy drivers Public sector budget pressures Government civil society strategy National Procurement Strategy for Local Government Localism and Decentralisation Big Society
Sustainable business Social enterprise offers an opportunity to deliver on the triple bottom line Economic job creation, stimulating local economies, delivering training, education and skills development Environmental land based enterprises and human resource rich opportunities exist to utilise the natural environment in sustainable ways Social innovative business models can be constructed to assist those hardest to reach in our society, through socially inclusive design and business with a cause
Why social enterprise Changing the world Rebalancing the economy Not in it for the money Inspire and innovate No more business as usual
Conclusion Although the green social enterprise sector is small, there are some leading examples in the East Midlands that offer pragmatic ways forward suggesting alternatives to dominant mainstream practices Social enterprise is an emerging concept that provides a platform for a value led business response to social and environmental problems
Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world: indeed, it s the only thing that ever has Margaret Mead