What is a social enterprise?
Social enterprises are businesses with a social or environmental mission at their core. They’re still in the business of making a profit, but what sets them apart is how they go about it—who they employ, how they use their profits, and the positive impact they aim to create. These businesses are on a mission to transform communities!
From cafés that employ and train people with disabilities to clothing brands that use recycled materials and support fair trade, social enterprises are everywhere. Fun fact: as many as a third of healthcare providers are social enterprises. Even your local bus service could be one!
Social enterprises must:
- Clearly define and prioritise a social or environmental mission in their governing documents, with operations laser-focused on achieving that mission.
- Operate independently from government control, generating at least half of their income through trading activities.
- Reinvest or donate at least 50% of profits or surpluses to further their mission.
- Maintain transparency in operations and openly share their impact.
Want to join the ranks of more than 131,000 social enterprises currently reducing economic inequality, advancing social justice, and improving environmental sustainability? Social enterprises are truly leaving their mark on the world!
Find out more about social enterprises on the Social Enterprise UK website.
Helping social entrepreneurs and enterprises to thrive
Social Enterprise Accelerator
Our new (2024) Social Enterprise Accelerator (SEA) project offers a comprehensive support package to help you bring your new social enterprise ideas to life or grow your existing Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisation.
This Social Enterprise Accelerator project is funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF). It is a collaborative partnership between NCVS and Nottingham Trent University’s (NTU) National VCSE Data and Insights Observatory.
Our free support is open to all aspiring social entrepreneurs in Nottingham. We are particularly keen to support enterprises working in the following fields:
- health and social care
- retail and leisure
- those whose goals align with the Carbon Neutral Nottingham 2028 initiative.
The project offers a range of workshop/training support in partnership with NTU.
The workshops will be in the key areas of starting up and growing a social enterprise including key topics such as business planning, marketing, legal structure/governance, measuring and reporting your impact, and tender readiness.
The project will also focus on the investment and funding options for social enterprises with a small number of grants linked to starting and growing a social enterprise.
You will have the chance to hear from existing social entrepreneurs, guest speakers and attend networking events to support you with your social enterprise journey. The project will also provide 1-2-1 support and mentoring.
Social Enterprise Accelerator workshops and training
Social Enterprise Accelerator’s free workshops and 1:1 support programme is here to help Nottingham’s budding social entrepreneurs decide whether social enterprise is right for them and set them off on the right road to getting their business off the ground. Register your interest on the NTU SEA webpage and be sure to follow their Eventbrite page to stay updated on future events.
New dates added for start-ups (save the dates)
SEA Start-up Programme for new and potential social entrepreneurs
The topics over the three days will include introducing you to social enterprise, the different legal structures that are available for social enterprises, and cover the essential elements of good governance. You’ll start to develop a business model canvas for your idea, learn how to sell and market it to develop trading income, and finally an introduction to the finance options available to fund your start-up.
Additional workshop
A different workshop may be offered on this date depending on outcomes from the Start-up Programme.
- Learning about BIPC resources: Thursday 26 June 2025, 11am to 12 noon at Nottingham Central Library, 1 Carrington Street, NG1 7FH
Get ahead with sourcing and accessing the key data, insight and information you need to make the right decisions for your social enterprise - register here
Growth Programme
Will focus more on one-to-one support with one targeted workshop per quarter.
- First workshop: Thursday 5 June 2025, 10am to 1pm (Title TBC)
Additional support
If you would like to find out what additional support is available from NCVS, you may find some of our other training and development opportunities and networks of value.
If you have a specific request, please complete our Request Support Form. Alternatively, you can contact us to find out more.
For possible funding opportunities, visit our funding page. The School for Social Entrepreneurs also has this handy list of potential funders for social enterprises.
You could also contact our Social Enterprise Development Coordinator, Chris Hill.
Email: chrish@nottinghamcvs.co.uk
Telephone: 07564 041430
