Research
Publications
Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS- What the new NHS reforms mean for social enterprises (PDF)
A briefing prepared by Social Enterprise Network in response to the Government's White Paper on Health and Social Care. We examine how the proposed reforms will affect social enterprises working in the Health and Social Care sector.
Social Enterprise and its role in the 'Big Society' (PDF)
A briefing prepared by Social Enterprise Network to inform members of the network of the Coalition government's plans for the 'Big Society' and the role social enterprise can play in this.
DEMOS: Measuring Social Value (PDF)
This report provides a snapshot of the third sector's ability to measure and communicate the social value of the services it provides. It also investigates the range of frameworks available for measuring social value and assesses progress made towards using these frameworks, particularly the Social Return on Investment (SROI) model currently being promoted by Government.
ResPublica: The Venture Society (PDF)
The Venture Society, is a flagship report which has been released by ResPublica's Civil Society and Social Innovation Unit. The report, part of a project commissioned by UnLtd, urges the new coalition government to create support infrastructure for start up social entrepreneurs, slash bureaucracy and introduce a tax change in its seven point blueprint to help create the Big Society.
The 'Big Society' is emerging as an important early theme for the Coalition government. The new regional strategy currently being developed for the North West makes social enterprise a priority. North West Together We Can commissioned ippr north to identify the critical success factors for social and community enterprises and inform the wider debate.
The report draws together the results of case study research, a survey of social and community enterprises in the North West, a small number of interviews with support providers and local authorities and a cross-sector workshop.
Building a Big Society (PDF)
The Conservative Party pre-election launch document, outlining their plans for the creation of a 'Big Society'.
'Keeping it Legal' A guide to legal forms for social enterprises (Link)
Choosing a legal form is an important part of establishing a social enterprise. As the framework for your business, it is important to develop a form that makes it as easy as possible for your social enterprise to be successful. This is an invaluable guide to the legal frameworks that surround the legal status of social enterprises and an essential read for the budding social entrepreneur.
The creators of this guide have recently provided an extremely useful Q&A session with the Guardian on this subject. View the article.
Setting up a Community Interest Company (Link)
This is a useful article which provides a brief overview of CICs and how they work. This article will give you a clearer idea of why some people set up their company as a CIC and the benefits that this can bring to your social enterprise.
Simply Legal (PDF)
A fantastic guide produced by Co-operatives UK, telling you all you need to know about legal forms and organisational types for community enterprises. Click the link above to download a free PDF version of the guide.
Social Enterprise Coalition Manifesto 2010 (PDF)
The Social Enterprise Manifesto was written by the Coalition in collaboration with the social enterprise community. It details ways in which certain key policy changes could help social enterprise maximise its impact. Click the link above to download the full Manifesto report for free.
