Thought Leadership

Today’s Budget marked a decisive shift to higher levels of public investment - welcome after more than a decade of austerity. This is particularly on capital spend, but social spending investment is also vital. So how can this additional spending can deliver a fairer, more sustainable and inclusive economy? Resource spending in health and social care is crucial. There have been numerous occasions in recent years when social enterprises delivering core NHS community services have been (and are still) unfairly excluded from government policies, programmes and funding. If the new government is serious about its manifesto commitments to prevention and community services, then it must recognise the essential role social enterprises already play in their delivery across the country every day. Many social enterprises will be concerned with some of today’s announcements. The rise in employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) will particularly impact social enterprises that create jobs, often for those furthest from the labour market. While Employment Allowance has been increased, which will reduce pressures on smaller businesses, this still raises questions over whether this is the fairest way to distribute the increased tax burden. Social enterprises that provide vital public services may be particularly impacted by the Budget. The minimum wage will rise alongside NICs. While social enterprises are committed to paying a living wage and offering better working conditions, those reliant on public sector funding may struggle with these additional costs if they do not receive a fair funding settlement from the public sector bodies they work with. However, there are clear signs this is a Budget that recognises aspects of the contribution of social enterprises and other mission-led business models. Pledges to reform the taxation of Employee Ownership Trusts and deliver a strategy for growing the co-operative economy demonstrate that there will be more support for diverse, mission-led business models going forward. Social Enterprise UK will continue to work with members and partners to ensure the Government understands the needs and aspirations of social enterprise. We do need investment - but we also need businesses that create high-quality employment, invest in their communities, and offer innovative ownership models that share wealth. We hope that the Chancellor will use her additional spending power to create the conditions in which social enterprises, as businesses committed to more than just profit, can thrive.

On Tuesday, 15 October 2024, Tarem Services, a social enterprise dedicated to tackling in-work poverty and food insecurity, joined forces with leading UK construction company Wates Group to bring essential food support to families in Kilburn Square through their Mobile Foodbank initiative. Tarem Services has partnered with Wates as a member of their supply chain, employed by the group to provide cleaning services and labour supply in Brent and on several other of their London contracts. Wates are currently delivering a wide range of planned works at Kilburn Square on behalf of Brent Council. A total of 100 food bags were distributed, each containing enough food to feed at least two people, benefiting approximately 200 individuals. This distribution directly addresses immediate community needs and demonstrates the commitment of both Tarem Services and Wates to supporting local communities. This collaboration forms part of Tarem Services' broader mission to provide support where it is needed most. Managing Director Titus Komolafe expressed his gratitude for the partnership and the positive impact achieved: “At Tarem Services, tackling in-work poverty starts with addressing fundamental needs like food security. Our partnership with Wates reflects what can be achieved when businesses are driven by shared social values. Together, we are making a real difference in the lives of families here in Kilburn Square.” James Gregg, Regional Managing Director for Wates, said: “Improving the lives of residents and creating thriving communities is at the core of our business. Partnering with social enterprises like Tarem to deliver initiatives like this allows us to support the local community in becoming stronger and more resilient. " Building Stronger Communities This initiative demonstrates how corporate and social enterprise partnerships can drive positive change and foster resilient communities. By collaborating with organisations like Wates, Tarem Services not only delivers high-quality services but also creates social value that uplifts the community. To learn more about Tarem Services’ Mobile Foodbank and discover how you can support our community initiatives, visit: taremservices.com/foodbank About Tarem Services Tarem Services Limited is a social enterprise focused on tackling in-work poverty and food insecurity, especially among cleaners in the UK. Founded in 1999 with the support of a Prince’s Trust grant, Tarem Services has built a reputation for responsible business practices. The company provides office and school cleaning, construction labour supply, pest control, and waste management services, all while remaining committed to social responsibility and environmental sustainability. About Wates Group Established in 1897, we are the UK’s leading family-owned development, building and property maintenance company. In 2022 we employed over 4,000 people and generated profits of £33.7m from a turnover of £1.89bn, working with a wide range of public and private sector customers and partners. Now in our fourth generation of family ownership, we’re committed to the long-term sustainability of the built environment and to making our industry more inclusive and representative of the communities we work in. We are one of The Times Top 50 Employers for Gender Equality and an Investors in People Gold accredited company. We are driven by our shared purpose of working together to inspire better ways of creating the places, communities, and businesses of tomorrow. wates.co.uk

By Andrew O'Brien, Director of Policy and Impact at Demos “I am determined to do everything in my power to galvanise growth; determined for this country to be the highest growing economy in the G7 - that is our most important national mission.” These were the words of the UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, at the Global Investment Summit earlier this month. It is no secret that the entire government’s political agenda depends on boosting growth.  But while Britain is desperate for growth after nearly two decades of stagnation, it needs to be a particular type of growth. Whether you call it good growth, inclusive growth or sustainable growth, we need growth that meaningfully improves the standard of living for working people. Our economy needs to grow not just by financial measures but in terms of social value – its contribution to local communities, its impact on individual wellbeing, its effect on the world around us. Take one issue: wages. Since the late 1970s, real wage growth significantly slowed down, from a healthy 5.5% per year to 4.4% in the 1980s right down to 1.6% in the 1990s. Despite the ‘Great Moderation’, it only ticked up slightly to 1.7% per year at the turn of the century, before the financial crisis led to wage stagnation and a permanent cost of living crisis. Growth also slowed in this period, but not as dramatically as wages. Median growth rates per decade fell by 24% from the 1970s to the 2000s, while wage growth rates fell by 70% in the same period. We made the wrong economic choices. We allowed highly productive, skilled industries to be replaced with lower productivity and insecure work. We oversaw an ‘extreme form of capitalism’ unique to the UK, where the ‘proceeds of growth’ went to a narrow group, both economically (the richest) and geographically (London and the South East). To be fair to the new government, they understand that they cannot just allow ‘growth’ to emerge organically; it needs to be directed. Their new Industrial Strategy says that “the government is committed to using the power of the state strategically to support and shape the UK’s economy and future growth”. Unfortunately, the UK has eroded state capacity over the past 40 years, and lacks the experience in steering markets needed to deliver good growth now. The new government’s position is akin to trying to win a Formula One race in a car that you’re building as you drive it. But there are tools available to help the new government drive inclusive growth – such as procurement, which it’s encouraging to see referenced in the new Industrial Strategy. The public sector is spending close to £400bn every year: 17% of UK GDP, and 14 times more money than the promised National Wealth Fund, reaching every part of our economy. There’s even more at stake in the private sector, where our largest businesses are spending billions on procurement every year. This presents an enormous opportunity to steer growth in the right direction, building a stronger but also fairer and more sustainable economy. If we can make better procurement decisions - spreading investment into social enterprises and SMEs across our regions, backing innovative new processes and technologies, and creating the conditions for long term planning and productivity gains - we can truly achieve good growth. This kind of focus on social value broadens decision making from short-term financial costs to factor in wider impacts, enabling the government to use procurement as a strategic lever for economic renewal. Central government‘s leadership role is critical; our whole economy is shaped by the standards they set, the organisations they buy goods and services from, and their appetite for risk. No other actor has the strategic capability to shape procurement, and unlock the full potential of social value, in the way that central government can. Early signs are encouraging. A review of the National Procurement Policy Statement is underway, including positive references to social value. Labour mayors are supporting ‘the social economy’ in London and Bristol, the VCSE sector in Greater Manchester and ‘business for good’ in West Yorkshire. The Procurement Act is due to take effect early next year, with an explicit government commitment in the new Industrial Strategy to using the legal framework it creates to deliver greater social value. However, social value must be a key tool for a mission-led government and a core part of their industrial strategy, not an afterthought. We need to create a national strategy for identifying the most socially valuable economic opportunities, encouraging their development, and rewarding businesses such as social enterprises that align to our shared priorities. The Social Value Act could be transformative, but there is much more that needs to be done, as outlined in our recent Demos paper ‘Taming the Wild West’. The government have limited economic levers they can pull to achieve good growth, and social value has a critical role to play in achieving their promised “decade of national renewal”. There is no time to lose.

Beth Vecchione, founder of the social enterprise Care to Dance, is running an ultramarathon just over 6 months after a car accident left her with a broken back to raise money for the care-experienced young people the organisation supports. Young people’s mental health is at an all-time low, exclusions at an all-time high and services unable to keep up with demand. For the 15th year in a row, the number of children in care has continued to rise; in March 2023, there were over 80,000 children in the system. Most of these children and young people will have experienced instability and trauma, and will be living with the effects of this, and finding creative ways to support them is crucially needed. So, to raise money for Care to Dance and the young people it supports, Beth set herself the challenge of not just recovering, but running an ultramarathon before the end of the year. Care to Dance uses dance to support care-experience young people - to help them feel a sense of belonging and freedom, but also to process what they’ve been through. By building inclusive communities where young people feel safe, are among people they trust and can express themselves freely, it aims to provide the stability and consistency they likely missed growing up and help them develop relationships built on trust so they have people to turn to. Beth, CEO and founder of Care to Dance, says “Breaking my back really brought home for me how hard it must to be to go through dark times alone without anyone to turn to or support networks to rely on. This is often the case for care-experienced young people. I’ve seen the transformational impact the Care to Dance community has for them, the improved mental well-being, motivation and self-belief. I want to show all our young people just how much is possible if you put your mind to it, what you can overcome with mental strength and determination, and people backing you. I want to support as many young people across the country as possible, especially at a time when so many young people are struggling.” Lucy, a young person who attends Care to Dance, says “Life was a struggle until I came to Care to Dance. I started to express myself and trust the staff. Learning new skills and being part of a team made me a brighter person. Care to Dance supported me at my worst, and inspired me to be my best. It made me a better human.” You can find out more about Care to Dance on their website, and support Beth’s fundraising efforts via her Just Giving page. Beth can be contacted directly at beth@caretodance.co.uk.

Over two weekends this November, Winter Open Studios returns to Cockpit for a festive celebration ofcreativity and making (21–24 November and 29 November–1 December). At this unique shopping event, you’ll discover the work of leading craftspeople and up-and-coming makers, all created in their studios at Cockpit in Bloomsbury and Deptford, with price points to suit every budget. Cockpit, an award-winning social enterprise and the last remaining specialist craft studios in London, has launched the careers of some of the biggest names in contemporary craft. Their studios are currently home to over 175 talented artist-makers working in more than 20 craft disciplines, from fine jewellery to ceramics to woodworking, fashion and textiles, antiques restoration and more. Open Studios is a unique opportunity to go behind the scenes and have face-to-face conversations with makers to learn the stories behind each original piece and discover how these remarkable objects are made. This is your chance to shop direct from exceptional craftspeople and invest in unique pieces, with all of your holiday gifting supporting makers and independent businesses. Discover an extraordinary world of creativity, made at Cockpit. Highlights for winter include: Discover exceptional objects and ‘Open Studios exclusive’ work from the UK’s leading makers and be the first to meet the stars of the future Enjoy a truly unique shopping experience and purchase one-of-a-kind gifts directly from leadingartist-makers and Cockpit alumni (view our Gifting Press Release for details) Uncover a hidden cultural gem where up-and-coming makers work alongside established leadersin their field Explore Cockpit’s stylish new development in Deptford, which includes a brand-new café, publicart installation and London’s only Craft Garden Tickets start from £5, with discounts are available for advance bookings, concessions and local residents. All ticket sales support Cockpit’s work as a registered charity. Cockpit Bloomsbury – 21–24 November 2024 Opening Hours: Thursday 21 November, 12-8 pm – VIP & Press Preview (Drinks reception from 5 pm) Friday 22 November–Sunday 24 November, 12-6 pm – General admission Cockpit Deptford – 29 November–1 December Opening Hours: Friday 29 November, 12-4 pm – VIP & Press Preview Friday 29 November, 4-8 pm – General admission Saturday 30 November–Sunday 1 December, 12-6 pm – General admission Tickets: Open Access Pass (multiple entries including VIP Preview) – limited quantities available:o Bloomsbury pass (4 days): £30o Deptford pass (3 days): £25o Bloomsbury & Deptford pass (all days): £35 General admission: £10 advance (£12 on the door) Concessions (Seniors 65+, students, unwaged, disabled (carer ticket is free)): £8 advance (£10on the door) Children (16 and under): FREE Local Residents – Camden (Bloomsbury) and Lewisham (Deptford) (on the door only): Half pricewith proof of address (£6) Friday late in Deptford: £5 advance (£6 on the door) About Cockpit Cockpit is a centre of excellence in contemporary craft and one of the top 100 UK social enterprises on the NatWest Pioneers Post SE100 Index for over a decade. For more than 30 years, Cockpit has nurtured and supported craftspeople at the fragile, early stages of their careers. The UK’s only incubator for craft businesses, Cockpit is home to a community of over 170 independent creative businesses – metalsmiths, jewellers, weavers, woodturners and ceramicists – at two London locations. Thanks to funded studio space and in-house business coaching, Cockpit makers thrive, with many going on to become international leaders in their fields. Bridging the gap between talent and opportunity, Cockpit’s education and careers programmes open pathways into creative employment for young Londoners from all backgrounds. Cockpit received the Prove It: Social Impact Award at the 2023 UK Social Enterprise Awards. cockpitstudios.org @cockpitstudios

Public bodies are being urged to use their purchasing power to tackle poverty and inequality within local communities and create a good jobs industry in the UK in a new report ‘Public Good Procurement’ issued on behalf of the grassroots #BetterForUs campaign run by award-winning community enterprise, Aspire Community Works. Drawing on its own lived experience of the procurement process, the report argues that all too often public procurement pushes wages down, fails to address deep-rooted inequalities and puts pressure on the public purse through subsidising low paying employers who offer bad work detrimental to people’s health. This puts good employers who pay the Real Living Wage at a disadvantage within the procurement process, leading to a spiral of downward wages within the procurement process and negative public value. The report urges the UK Government to take the lead in delivering maximum public value across the country through raising the standards in how public authorities spend £390 billion every year as part of its national missions to promote growth and opportunity.  The report calls on the UK Government to: require the Real Living Wage as the default position for all public contracts irrespective of value, lifting thousands of people out of poverty; require good working conditions as the default position for all public contracts irrespective of value providing high quality and sustainable opportunities for people working on public contracts; particularly for those in traditionally low paying occupations; introduce a target to support Good Works organisations that work with people who are disadvantaged by the labour market to promote a more inclusive economy and bring more people back into the workforce; highlight the mission of public good procurement and links key objectives to the Sustainable Development Goals within its forthcoming National Procurement Policy Statement. Dr Katharine Sutton, author of the report said: “This is a once in a life-time opportunity for a new Government to stamp its authority on a new Procurement Act due to be introduced in February 2025. If only one percent of the procurement spend in the UK was reserved for positive action employment programmes this would generate £3.9 billion for local communities and Good Work organisations that aim to support and sustain people into and in employment. These programmes could take place within in-house delivery, under the auspices of private contractor or run by social enterprises themselves. Using public procurement to set the standards and act as an example for all employers is an economic imperative that will deliver inclusive growth that makes a real difference to people’s lives.” The report includes recommendations to other public bodies and practical guidance on how public procurement can be used for the public good. betterforus.org.uk Notes BetterForUs 2020-2024 is a campaign run on behalf of award-winning organisation Aspire Community Works that tackles labour market disadvantage through providing sustainable employment and training opportunities offering the Real Living Wage as a minimum,  good working conditions and promoting frontline employees’ voice in the design and delivery of services. The majority of its frontline work is obtained through the public procurement process. The Government has recently announced that the Procurement Act 2023 will come into force in February 2025. It has delayed its implementation to draw up a new National Procurement Policy Statement and is currently consulting on this issue. In the UK procurement is devolved  and the report outlines the differences in approach within the UK. It is calling on the UK Government to incorporate the Sustainable Development Goals as the golden thread to run through all procurement in the UK. BetterforUs is supported by Trust for London.

Social enterprise The Fair Tax Foundation has launched a community share offer on social investment platform Ethex looking to raise £450,000 to expand its operations and bring five times as many businesses into its progressive movement. Across the globe, 35% of multinational profits (£1trn) are artificially shifted to tax havens each year, robbing the public purse of funding for vital public services such as transport and healthcare. The UK suffers from a corporate tax shortfall of £12.5bn each year because of this multinational profit-shifting. Some 10 years ago the Fair Tax Foundation saw there was another way to do business. Since then, it has enjoyed a decade of steady income growth and seven consecutive years of surplus. With the Fair Tax Mark, the gold standard responsible tax accreditation, the Fair Tax Foundation is central to a movement of progressive businesses that are proud to pay their taxes and celebrate the enormous contribution this makes to public services. Some 250 distinct trading businesses are Fair Tax Mark accredited, including FTSE-listed companies such as SSE and Marshalls, and household names such as Lush, the Coop and Timpson. Collectively, Fair Tax businesses employ over 275,000 people and contribute more than £1.7bn in corporation tax annually. Co-operatives and social enterprises were early pioneers of the Fair Tax Mark, with Midcounties, Scotmid, Energy4All, Suma and the Co-op being amongst the first businesses to become certified. These have since followed by other well-known co-operatives and social enterprises such as Arup, Jerba Campervans and Lendology In order to increase its impact on creating a fairer society, the Fair Tax Foundation will use the new investment to: - Create a new sales and business development team, broaden its product offering, expand its back-office and recruit and train new technical staff - Increase its income from c.£500,000 to c.£2mn per year - Quintuple its corporate engagement in the UK and overseas, leading to hundreds more Fair Tax Mark accredited companies Fair Tax Foundation Chief Executive Paul Monaghan said: “This share offer is a rare opportunity to buy community shares in, and become a member of, the Fair Tax Foundation – with subscribers becoming shareholders in the Society alongside existing members. We believe the more businesses that stand up for responsible tax conduct, the more likely legislators are to create better laws, and the more likely regulators are to implement those laws robustly. Since our inception a decade ago, much has been achieved in reversing the global race to the bottom on corporation tax. But there is still so much more that needs to be achieved, both in the UK and across the globe. By supporting us to scale up our business, investors will help expand our influence, bolster public coffers and help steer the economy in a more enlightened direction at this critical moment in history.” Ethex CEO Lisa Ashford said: “We are very excited to offer our community of investors the opportunity to support this share offer. We see it as a great chance to use your money to help create a more just and equitable world where corporations pay their fair share of tax and everyone in society can reap the benefits." The offer opens on 2nd September for a period of three months - targeting an initial annual return of 6%, and UK base rate plus 1% thereafter. There is a minimum investment threshold of £200, and a maximum of £60,000 for individuals and £100,000 for organisations. As with all investments of this nature, capital is at risk and returns are not guaranteed. Investors can participate in the offer via the Ethex investing platform at https://www.ethex.org.uk/invest/fairtax Notes to editors: Fair Tax Foundation was established as a not-for-profit social enterprise in 2014, and is registered with the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority as a Community Benefit Society. It’s rules incorporate a statutory “asset lock” to ensure that any retained surpluses are used solely for the promotion of good corporate tax conduct. Ethex aims to help everyday people make ethical investments that fund extraordinary organisations.” It is a not-for-profit with a mission to ‘make money do good’, and has spent the past ten years creating a vibrant marketplace for positive investment. Community shares are withdrawable shares that cannot be sold, traded or transferred between members, unlike shares in a typical company. Members are entitled to one vote, regardless of how many shares they hold. Members can be paid interest on their shares, and can withdraw their shareholding (along with any interest accrued) by selling shares back to the Society, subject to the board’s approval. Any money invested is fully at risk and is not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

In this blog Charlie Walker, Managing Director at Cleand for Good, looks into the Government's plan to scrap 'waiting days' and the need to transform sick pay. The Government have announced their new employment rights bill, something they promised within their manifesto. Within the raft of measures, ‘waiting days’ associated with Statutory Sick Pay will be removed. No idea what I am talking about? Nor did I, before joining Clean for Good. It probably means, like me, you have never had to worry about sick pay in your job. Grab a cuppa and let’s dive into the detail on all things Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). It’s more interesting than you might think! SSP is the minimum pay that employers have to pay staff when they fall ill. Currently it is £116.75 per week, or £23.35 per day, (so just over £3 per hour). You are only entitled to SSP if you earn a certain amount per week, more than £123 AND if you have been ill for more than 3 consecutive days. So, for the first 3 days you are off ill you get paid nothing. And it’s these 3 days that are known as ‘waiting days’. Still with me? Many (perhaps all?) of us will never have come into contact with ‘waiting days’. We have worked for good employers who have decided to run their own ‘Occupational Sick Pay’ scheme. These schemes go above and beyond SSP, often considerably so, and will pay staff (rightly) for every day they are off sick and most of the time at full pay. This is a wonderful benefit. In over 20 years of working, I have never had to worry about being off sick. So, what’s the issue? Well, picture a multi-storey building in the heart of London, every floor filled with different companies, lawyers, charity workers, insurers, bankers, engineers and more. One of the lawyers catches a bug and his lovely HR team tell him to go home, rest up and only come back when he is fully recovered. The lawyer agrees and after 2 days of bed, Netflix, and chicken soup he comes back to work, rested and recovered. Unfortunately, though, the bug has spread, and it takes down other members of the office and also Carol, the cleaner, who came to clean the building that evening. Carol is on SSP and is confronted with the reality of these ‘waiting days’. Does she stay at home and get paid nothing for 2 days or turn up to work ill. Terrible choice made worse by the fact that Carol earns less than the real living wage. Two days off genuinely puts at risk her ability to pay her mortgage, her bills and more. It’s not really a choice, she goes to work. As we take this further and begin to imagine Carol having to go to hospital and being forced off for a week earning just £46.70, what then? Lots of us, I suspect, would begin to struggle with our bills and payments that month. And maybe you could scramble through for a month, but after 10 years of the same thing? It’s like a repetitive kick to the face and it’s the horrible reality for Carol and thousands of cleaners, security guards, and others in low paid professions across the UK So, we will of course welcome the scrapping ‘waiting days’, whilst at the same time not pretending that getting by on £23.35 SSP per day, is anywhere near adequate. At Clean for Good we are one of the very few cleaning companies (and to date I have not come across any in London including some of the real biggies in the market) who run our own occupational sick pay scheme. From day 1 if cleaners are off sick, at Clean for Good, they are paid in full. One of the joys in the last couple of years was taking on a team of new cleaners from another cleaning company (this happens at the point that you take over a cleaning contract) and seeing one of our new cleaners, eyes bulging as we explained to her that CFG has its own sick pay scheme. She stopped me mid-sentence and exclaimed…What, you will pay me if I am sick? To which I replied Yes, we will! She had been a cleaner in London for over 15 years surviving on SSP. If you’re not sure what your employer pays you when you go off ill, you will find the policy lurking somewhere in the depths of your staff handbook. Do go and check it out, and if you are part of an organisation that has its own sick pay scheme go and encourage your HR team and tell them they are all wonderful today! Find out more? The centre for progressive change is running a national campaign on sick pay. If you want to find out more on the whole area of sick pay. Check the campaign out here.