Case studies

Evenbreak is a social enterprise set up to close the disability employment gap, giving disabled people access to the same opportunities in the workplace as others. From not knowing which employers genuinely welcome disabled candidates to inaccessible recruitment processes – disabled people face multiple barriers in entering, thriving and progressing in the workplace. Many often lack self-confidence in a work culture where negative perceptions of disabled people still exist. Breaking down barriers Through everything it does, Evenbreak works to break down these barriers. The social enterprise runs an online jobs board specifically for disabled candidates to find work with inclusive employers. The majority of its income is through charging organisations for advertising their roles. Since the social enterprise was set up, over 700 employers have advertised on the site and more than 90,000 candidates have registered on the platform. Evenbreak also delivers training and consultancy services to help organisations make their systems and processes more inclusive, removing any disabling barriers people may face. To counter negative perceptions, it promotes success stories of disabled people in work. Income from the jobs board and training services enables Evenbreak to run its Career Hive: a career support service for disabled people containing online resources and workshops, a directory of support services, ‘meet the employer’ events and one-to-one career coaching.  The Hive improves candidates’ confidence by giving them the skills and support needed to succeed. So far, around 200,000 people have accessed the Hive, with 500 receiving personalised coaching. Experts through experience Evenbreak was founded by Jane Hatton in 2011. She had been working in the field of inclusion and diversity when, on becoming disabled herself, she established Evenbreak. Working largely from bed following spinal surgery, she set up a business dedicated to connecting disabled candidates and inclusive employers. All Evenbreak’s staff are disabled, with all services designed and delivered by disabled people, bringing an authenticity to its work that is grounded in lived experience. Creating an inclusive workplace culture is embedded within the social enterprise itself, which has a strong focus on incorporating the principles of intersectionality into its operations. Given disability doesn’t discriminate, this approach looks at different, interlocking aspects of a person’s identity - such as race, gender, age and sexual orientation - and how these can result in individuals facing multiple forms of discrimination. Taking an intersectional approach allows Evenbreak to understand the multiple issues faced by candidates, and better tailor its work to the needs of individuals. All its training and consultancy work includes an emphasis on intersectionality. Setting up as a social enterprise was important to Jane, as it allowed the business to focus on the people it supports, unlike a traditional business focused on shareholder value. As she puts it: “We didn’t want to be a traditional company, as it would mean profiting from the inequality that disabled people face - and also, we wanted to be driven by the needs of disabled people, not the needs of shareholders. But we didn’t want to set up as a charity, as that would send out all the wrong messages; our candidates aren’t charity cases, they are a valuable source of talent to employers.” An award-winning social enterprise Evenbreak’s work transforming the world of employment for disabled people was recognised in 2023 when it won the Building Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Justice Award at our UK Social Enterprise Awards. Commenting on this success, Jane said: “Winning the UK Social Enterprise Award for Building Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Justice was a great opportunity to endorse our work to existing and future clients - and showcase the benefits of diversity, inclusion, equity and social justice more widely, from a social impact perspective.”  evenbreak.co.uk To find out more about entering or sponsoring the UK Social Enterprise Awards 2024, click here.

Competition lies at the heart of our economic system, purportedly driving businesses to innovate, allowing the best to flourish. Social enterprises on the other hand like to do things differently, and in the Midlands five businesses have taken a new and exciting approach to collaborate in order to win new business and increase their social impact. What’s more they are all working within a sector that is not particularly well known for its ethical practices – the cleaning industry. Argonaut Community Enterprises, Jericho Cleaning, Radiant Cleaners and Upbeat Clean are all social enterprise cleaning companies dedicated to creating job opportunities for marginalised groups. Whilst each have specific social missions (Argonaut trains and employs deaf people, Upbeat works with refugee mums and Jericho and Radiant both support anyone facing major barriers to work) they are all dedicated to using cleaning as a means to help people into secure employment, earn a good wage and increase their confidence. Each business operates in a different area of the Midlands, with a bit of crossover around Birmingham, and for a while they all worked in isolation. This started to change following a meeting between Amie Grice, Business Development at Argonaut, and Nigel Lawrence, Senior Social Enterprise Manager at Jericho, where they realised the similarities in their work and that they were talking to the same people regarding future work opportunities. Following this meeting Argonaut and Jericho decided to collaborate more, attending the same events and even pitching each other’s services – Argonaut in North Birmingham and Jericho in the South. According to Amie,through catching up and chatting at events “we saw the opportunity of working together would expand our coverage and strengthen our businesses. Opening doors that were previously closed to small Social Enterprises.” At the same time Nigel was in contact with Matt Parfitt, founder of Radiant Cleaners and both of them were also helping out Upbeat Clean, the newest of the businesses involved. Working together to find opportunities and increase impact All four organisations met at Jericho’s offices on 6 February 2023 and decided to support each other through finding potential opportunities and sharing learning, information and resources – this could be identifying new work or sharing information on what’s working and what’s not. Sharing learning has been one of the key benefits of collaborating, as Michael Gladwell, Head of Enterprise at Upbeat Clean put it: “It's been so helpful for Upbeat Clean to be part of this group and learn with these really experienced social enterprise cleaning businesses. Everyone has been so open to share what they have learned and developed over the years so that we can all maximise our social impact!” All four businesses agree that operating as a social enterprise has been a key part in fostering their collaborative approach, Nigel Lawrence stating that: “Social enterprises are united by their 'why'. We've got so much in common - we're about seeing problems in society solved. So, sharing ideas and best practice - to have more impact together - makes sense.” Where opportunities arise all four social enterprises are looking to put together joint proposals to allow them to work on bigger contracts, increasing the social value and impact of the services provided. Recently the group have submitted a proposal to a client to deliver cleaning services in a standard, uniform manner across the whole of the Midlands region. Watch this space Argonaut, Jericho, Radiant Cleaners and Upbeat Communities are showing that collaboration can work better than competition and, what’s more, another Midlands based cleaning social enterprise – Rising Stars Property Solutions has recently joined the four original businesses. Not only is working together helping each business to find new opportunities and raise each other’s profiles it has also got the potential to really help those marginalised groups which each social enterprise supports. As Matt Parfitt puts it: “Individually each of our companies is too small for some contracts. We are demonstrating to large companies that we have heard them, we are collaborating and we are offering them what they want and need. We solve a cleaning and social value problem for them – working together creates the social value they want, delivers the excellent cleaning they need and changes the lives of people across the Midlands. So if you need cleaning anywhere in the Midlands get in touch!’ It’s still early days for this new collaboration and all five involved have exciting plans for the future. Watch this space.

Unwritten social rules of corporate office culture and recruitment practices can present real barriers for neurodiverse people, both in finding employment and then thriving at work. Only 29% of autistic adults in the UK have paying jobs, compared with 80% of working-age people without a disability [i], despite research showing the vast majority want to work [ii]. The seemingly successful minority who do find work still face challenges, often struggling to be themselves in the workplace and not receiving the support they need. auticon is a social enterprise on a mission to change this and build a more inclusive world, by addressing inequalities in employment for neurodivergent adults and showcasing the strengths of neurodiversity in society. It was initially founded in Berlin in 2011 by Dirk Müller Remus, a father wanting better employment opportunities for his autistic son. The business model was simple: employing autistic adults as IT consultants, tapping into the STEM skills often associated with neurodiversity to help organisations in need of tech support. Following investment from Germany’s first social investment fund, the business grew to have six German offices, with large clients such as BMW and Allianz. Global expansion followed, with auticon UK opening in 2016. The company operates in 14 countries with two main workstreams: IT consulting (in data science, analytics, engineering, cyber-security and quality assurance) and offering EDI services on neuroinclusion. Creating jobs and changing lives auticon employs adults on the autism spectrum as technology consultants, supported by job coaches and project managers, who are matched with client organisations to suit their individual skills. Its innovation lab, auticon Labs, is where neurodivergent teams-members collaborate with clients and investors to develop technology solutions to the challenges of neurodivergent people in the workplace and in their day-to-day lives. Globally, auticon currently employs more than 450 autistic consultants on full-time contracts with big businesses including PwC, NatWest, Deloitte and Zurich among their many UK clients. 67% of auticon consultants had been unemployed for more than a year, despite 85% having a professional qualification or degree, and the impact of supportive employment has been transformative [iii]. 92% of consultants feel supported at work, 87% say their quality of life has improved since joining the organisation, and 91% believe they’re valued for who they are. auticon consultants Chris Lever said: “Before I joined auticon, I had been unemployed for 15 months, and was being treated for depression for the third time. auticon took me in and I’ve been working consistently for 3.5 years now. That is the power of a social enterprise.” Transforming business culture As well as directly supporting autistic people to build successful IT careers, auticon works with other employers to shift perceptions of neurodiversity in the world of work. auticon’s Neuroinclusion Services help organisations to become confident neuroinclusive employers through consultancy, training and support. 85% of clients report a greater understanding of neurodiversity as a result of working with auticon, and the same percentage say their team feels more confident working with autistic people. Furthermore, the skills and insights of auticon consultants are having a real positive impact on clients’ work; 93% reported that consultants made valuable professional contributions to projects, with increased accuracy and efficiency as well as more innovative approaches cited as benefits of their alternative perspectives. Gareth Crabtree, Head of Data Design Enablement at auticon client PwC UK, said: “Throughout my time working with auticon consultants, they have consistently demonstrated a range of technical skills that have allowed them to produce innovative and high quality work. Having autistic people on my team has led me to having a much better understanding of neurodiversity, helping to make me a more well-rounded leader. The support that auticon’s job coaches provide is highly valued, and it is very clear that the needs of their consultants are very much at the centre of everything that they do.” Shifting perceptions auticon works closely with customers, local communities and other partners to raise awareness across society of the benefits that autistic people can offer employers as well as the barriers they face. So far auticon has delivered more than 235 awareness events and trained 66 organisations. Last year, they also launched a podcast series, featuring leading voices on autism from around the world. auticon places neurodivergent people at the heart of its workforce. All consultants are on the autism spectrum and 78% of the workforce are neurodivergent, making it a majority autistic business. Its success shows how a social enterprise can transform the lives of people facing real barriers in the workplace, not only empowering individuals but changing the way they’re viewed by big businesses and wider society. In 2022, auticon’s incredible impact was formally recognised when it was named UK Social Enterprise of the Year at the UK Social Enterprise Awards, and since then the company has gone from strength to strength. This summer, auticon joined forces with a Norwegian social enterprise called Unicus that runs a similar model, making it the largest autistic-majority company in the world.   You can find out more about auticon's impact in their latest impact report auticon.com/uk [i] ONS statistics on outcomes for disabled people in the UK [ii] See the Autism Employment Gap Report from the National Autistic Society [iii] auticon Impact Report 2022

Breadwinners is a social enterprise set up to help refugees gain work experience and employment. The company produces organic artisan bread and pastries to sell at market stalls and wholesale to restaurants, cafés and businesses. Breadwinners was founded in 2015 with the goal of helping people struggling with employment to set up their own businesses, with a specific focus of supporting refugees. After some grant funding to get off the ground, a year later the business was ready to launch. Initially, it provided training, financing and equipment to help people start their own bicycle delivery service selling bread to customers – but in 2017 its business model shifted toward market stalls. From that first stall in East London’s Victoria Park, now there are 14 across London and Brighton, with all the profits supporting young people seeking asylum and those with refugee status. Director, Martin Cosarinsky Campos, explained: “We chose the social enterprise model business model because it allows us to directly address the problem of unemployment faced by refugees. By selling a product - in this case, bread and pastries - we are able to provide employment opportunities and give young refugees their first job in the UK. Traditional charity models are also important and helpful, but they are unable to provide the same level of direct support through employment.” Supporting people at all stages of the asylum process Breadwinners runs three separate programmes designed to help people at various stages in the complex asylum process. The core Breadwinners programme supports those who have been granted refugee status but who are struggling to find work, offering them their first job in the UK as market stall managers earning the Living Wage. Programme participants receive practical training, help with their English and support to gain professional qualifications. When Covid-19 lockdowns meant demand for online shopping rose dramatically, the Proofers programme was created, training refugees to become online sales representatives. Breadwinners no longer has online shops, so people who developed their IT skills and customer service experience on the Proofers programme now help to manage the wholesale business. There’s also the Risers programme of early intervention support for young people aged 16 to 24 who are seeking asylum, providing them with work experience and training as market stall assistants. Business success and award-winning impact So far, Breadwinners has supported 315 refugees and young people seeking asylum, delivering 405 employability training sessions and 2,904 hours of mentoring. 92 per cent of programme participants have progressed into further employment, university or volunteering work. 93 per cent report a significant increase in their wellbeing. Breadwinners is leading the way in developing innovative ways to communicate its impact, winning the Prove It Social Impact Award at the UK Social Enterprise Awards 2022. Martin said: “This award is a great source of motivation for us to continue improving and making a positive impact in the community.” The organisation’s 2022 impact report used a Participatory Action Research methodology, led by graduates from their programmes, ensuring that the voice of participants was central to the impact measurement process. Martin commented: “We are very proud of what young people who have been through our programmes go on to do. We have future doctors studying in university, charity workers supporting young people with housing, IT consultants and many people in hospitality and services which will continue to grow and develop. We are also very proud to have kept doing what we do through all the recent unprecedented challenges, and the fact that we were able to continue finding ways to support young refugees when they needed us the most.” Learn more in this short film from Martin and market stall manager Jamal, who came to the UK as an asylum seeker from Sudan, explaining some of the major challenges refugees face in finding work. You can read Breadwinners latest impact report here. breadwinners.org.uk

Social enterprises are more representative of wider society than traditional businesses with 14% being led by someone from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic community, compared to just 8% of SMEs.[1] This Black History Month we are spotlighting Black-led social enterprises which are breaking down barriers, creating opportunities and transforming lives. The Blair Project Set up by brothers Nile and Blair Henry when they were just teenagers, The Blair Project is a Manchester based social enterprise on a mission to diversify the STEM workforce and accelerate the transition to net zero through sustainable motorsport. The business aims to provide opportunities to young people so that they can participate in the green tech revolution through building, racing and accelerating innovations in electric go-karts. Combining fun with learning, the Blair Project has helped build confidence and open up new possibilities for the young people it works with. One of the social enterprises’ main programmes is the ProtoEV Challenge which works with young people aged 10-19. The Challenge sees teams work together to convert used petrol go-karts into electric e-karts giving participants knowledge in topics such as physics, IT, design and branding as well as technical skills in areas such as 3D printing, battery technologies and electronic controls. Diversity and inclusion are core to the Project’s work and programmes are specifically set up to target young people who have low awareness of jobs in STEM with a real focus on supporting young Black and Asian youth, women and working-class talent from all backgrounds. So far the business has worked with over 560 young people. 95% of participants who complete the ProtoEV programme have found jobs, apprenticeships or moved into further education. theblairproject.org Generation Success Founded after the London Riots in 2011 by social entrepreneur James Adeleke, Generation Success was created with the aim of countering the “lost generation” narrative which characterised much of the media coverage of the events. The company aims to give people from poorer communities access to the same opportunities open to the wealthy or as James phrases it to: “create a world where your career opportunities are not determined by your birth”. The social enterprise is dedicated to social mobility, running a series of programmes specifically focused on young people from minority and low-income backgrounds. These include mentoring, networking events, training and job opportunities designed to allow businesses to connect with people from diverse backgrounds. Generation Success now has partnerships with 70 employers including big businesses like PwC, SAP and BT and even the BBC. Through working in partnership with businesses, Generation Success has been able to work with organisations to help transform their recruitment practices and open up access to a pool of talent that is overlooked. James’ work has received several accolades, including earning a place on the NatWest SE100 Index, and winning the Entrepreneur of Excellence Award in the National Diversity Awards 2022. Generation Success’s work has been transformative. The social enterprise now has a network of over 10,000 young people, 70% of whom are from disadvantaged and/or ethnic minority backgrounds. It recently launched a programme in partnership with other organisations to increase diversity in the sustainability sector which currently is only made up of an estimated 3.1% of professionals from a ethnic minority background. generation-success.com Rising Star Property Solutions La’Toyah Lewis came up with the idea of setting up a business to give people a second chance when her personal circumstances led to it being difficult for her to find work. Her own lived experience meant she was keenly aware of how poverty and lack of opportunity are  barriers to employment, and it was this that inspired her to set up Rising Star Property Solutions. Rising Stars is a social enterprise property service company dedicated to supporting disadvantaged groups including ex-offenders, people with mental health issues, single parents and those experiencing long-term unemployment. It has now grown to become the third largest property service company in the Midlands, managing a portfolio of over 60,000 properties. Unlike other property service businesses, Rising Stars is “social value and people-led” with a mission to provide work experience, training and employment opportunities to disadvantaged groups. The business primarily works with the social housing sector offering four main services – cleaning, clearance, gardening and construction. All of its money is earned through trading and profit is put back into training, employing and supporting more people. risingstarpropertysolutions.com [1] https://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/seuk-report/no-going-back-state-of-social-enterprise-survey-2021/

The area around Anfield has a proud sense of community and at its heart was Mitchells Bakery, selling pies to locals and to football fans on match-days. However a lack of investment in Liverpool coupled with what has been described as the controlled decline of the city resulted in people moving out of the area, rising unemployment and boarded up housing. Mitchell’s Bakery was forced to close. In 2002 the area was identified as a ‘market-failure’ with properties designated to be demolished and rebuilt under the Housing Market Renewal Initiative. When this scheme was pulled in 2010, the area was effectively abandoned. Taking regeneration into their own hands What followed was an ambitious attempt by members of the local community to save the bakery and take ownership of the local area to steer development to benefit residents. It all started with an arts project, 2 up 2 down, which worked with local people to rent out the bakery space and use it as a site for public discussion on planning the future of the area. It was decided by residents that the bakery should be re-opened as a community led business and in June 2012 Homebaked Bakery Co-operative was formed. The following year a community land trust (CLT) was formed to take on responsibility for the development of the bakery building and future community assets. A bakery at the heart of the community In October 2013, Homebaked Bakery was opened as a social enterprise dedicated to feed, employ and train the local community with an absolute commitment to improve the local area. The bakery’s strapline is ‘more than a pie’ with the shop employing local people, running training courses and using the space as a community hub. What started as a small business has now grown into a thriving social enterprise turning over £500,000, employing 16 people and supporting many more through its training programmes. Pre-COVID-19, 90% of the business’s income came directly through trading. Football income from matchdays is used to subsidies affordable prices and the business’s pies have attracted national fame and recognition Despite taking a hit during the pandemic the bakery continued to be a constant source of support for the Anfield community– providing freshly baked loaves and rolls to local foodbanks and organising the delivery of free school meals. The bakery is emerging out of the pandemic with ambitious plans for the future, looking to increase pie production beyond 3,000 a week, build up stronger links with both Liverpool FC and Everton and to continue to find more ways to feed, employ and support the local community.

Whilst at school Kerrine Bryan excelled at maths and science, enjoying the problem-solving aspect of these subjects. However, when it came to choosing a career, she felt that the subjects she loved did not give her many options beyond the expected accountancy qualifications. When she was 17 her maths teacher recommended she attend an engineering course which led to her having a successful career in the traditionally male dominated industry of engineering. Her experiences as an engineer and her initial lack of understanding as to what career opportunities were available to her, led Kerrine to set up a social enterprise dedicated to challenging the gender stereotypes which hold back the dreams and aspirations of so many children. Changing perceptions from a young age Butterfly Books is a business which creates playful and thought-provoking stories that aim to transform the lives and minds of children and families. Set up by Kerrine with the help of her brother Jason, the educational books challenge stereotypes and perceptions encouraging an open-minded world for future generations. “Remembering the misconceptions and lack of knowledge about engineering as a profession when I was at school, I decided to volunteer doing talks about my job across the country to children. It was then that I got the idea to develop a range of children’s books that could tackle some of these inherent misconceptions. I saw it as a good way of communicating to children a positive message about all kinds of professions, especially STEM careers that are suffering skill gaps and diversity issues.“ – Kerrine Bryan Butterfly Books is built on the premise that representation matters. Key to the social enterprise’s philosophy is the importance of challenging gender stereotypes at a young age, changing perceptions around what jobs are for girls and which jobs are for boys. Through changing this one small aspect of a child’s education they look to inspire the next generation to look beyond gender stereotypes. Their first published book was based on Kerrine’s own experiences and was called ‘My Mummy is an Engineer’. Subsequent publications have included ‘My Mummy is a Firefighter’, ‘My Mummy is a Footballer’ ‘My Mummy is a Plumber’ and ‘My Daddy is a Nurse’ which was the first of their books to focus on young boys, challenging entrenched attitudes on masculinity. Taking the message to schools and businesses Kerrine takes her stories into schools and so far around 7,000 copies of the books have been sold with the stories reaching approximately 15,000 children, addressing negative misconceptions and biases through colourful illustrations and rhyme. Butterfly Books collaborates with major organisations, working with them to ensure that content is relevant and grounded in the lived experience of the people whose jobs are being written about. These have included the British Army, Nursing Now England, London Fire Brigade and Lewes Football Club (which was the first football club to pay men and women players equal salaries). Organisations are also using the books in their own outreach, with ‘My Mummy is a Firefighter being used by fire stations across the country. Butterfly Book’s desire to break down stereotypes and promote a world of diversity and representation is an example of the ambitions of many social enterprises to build an economy based on principles of equity, diversity, inclusion and justice. butterflybooks.co.uk @butterflybooks You can buy Butterfly Books through their website and also on the eBay for Change Platform

At the heart of the Plymouth social economy is Real Ideas Organisation – a social enterprise based in the city which works across the Southwest and beyond. Its mission is to solve problems and create opportunity for individuals, organisations and communities. It does this through a variety of programmes centred on helping young people into careers and employment, supporting the growth and development of social enterprises and acting as a hub for community, business, and cultural activity. Turning a cherished local asset into the heart of Plymouth’s social enterprise sector Real Ideas is based in the Guildhall in Devonport, a part of the city that, following decades of deindustrialisation, became one of the poorest parts of the country.  Devonport Guildhall, a magnificent Regency era building, became symbolic of this decline gradually falling into disrepair. Real Ideas took ownership of the building in 2007 in a community asset transfer from Plymouth City Council, securing £1.8 million to refurbish the hall from the Community Assets Fund. This was no ordinary building restoration - the social enterprise took ownership of the Grade I listed Guildhall to turn it into a space that gives back to the local community. Devonport Guildhall reopened in 2010 as a space for social innovation – a place which brings people and businesses together to help build a sustainable and inclusive economy in the city. It has incubated a number of local community sector organisations, is home to a few established ones too, and has helped new food businesses to set up and grow during the pandemic by sharing access to the commercial kitchens and bakery facilities there. Most recently, Real Ideas renovated the Grade II listed Market Hall in Devonport, a £7.6million project which opened in the summer of 2021 as a new space for immersive technologies, complete with contemporary co-work and a 360-dome environment.  As well as Devonport Guildhall, Real Ideas also runs Ocean Studios – a space for arts, culture and making, with resident artists, shared making spaces and creative co-work. Real Ideas is also the Arts Council’s Bridge Organisation for the Southwest of England and works with schools, youth and cultural organisations to connect young people with art and culture. Growing the local social economy A core part of Real Ideas’ work is growing the local social economy through the development of community business. Its Empowering Places Programme, funded by Power to Change, has supported over 15 community businesses to start-up and thrive through a mixture of hands-on business support, training, tailored expert support and seed funding.  The programme has developed a focus on renewing high streets as well as in protecting parks and green spaces. Real Ideas has also supported thousands of young people take the next steps towards their future career, delivering employability projects in Cornwall funded by ESF, ERDF, National Lottery Community Fund and the Department for Work and Pensions. Environmental sustainability is woven into the business’ operations, underpinned Real Ideas’ One Planet Living’ approach. It runs a range of programmes with this focus. For example, the Enrich programme, part of the Plymouth Green Estates Management Solutions Project (GEMS), specifically looks at how social enterprises and community businesses can be used to find positive solutions to sustaining the city’s parks. realideas.org