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Social Enterprise Day event 2007

Social Enterprise Day marked the final event in this year's Edge Upstarts programme. We joined some of the lading figues in the sector to discuss: The only way is up? Can the recent successes of the social enterprise sector be sustained?

Key speakers:

• Phil Hope MP, Minister for the Third Sector
• Nigel Kershaw, Chairman, The Big Issue
• Cliff Prior, Chief Executive, UnLtd
• Allison Ogden-Newton, Chief Executive, SEL

Listen to the podcast.

“I really do hope that, in ten years' time, there's no such thing as social enterprise.” It's not a sentiment you'd expect to hear at an event organised for Social Enterprise Day, which celebrates businesses that deliver on social and environmental targets as well as financial ones. And especially not from Nigel Kershaw, the chairman of The Big Issue Foundation. But that's the line he took at 'The only way is up?', a debate about whether the recent successes of the social enterprise sector can be sustained, which was held at the Grouse and Claret in Belgravia on 15 November. Of course, Nigel's statement wasn't all it seemed, and by the end of the speech he'd explained his views. “We're trying to make a change,” he said, “so if we're still here in ten years, then we haven't done enough.” Still, he wasn't the only speaker with an unexpected viewpoint to share.

While Phil Hope MP, Minister for the third sector, and Allison Ogden-Newton, Chief Executive of SEL, were both optimistic about the increasing profile of social enterprise in recent months, Cliff Prior, Chief Executive of UnLtd, warned that the sector wasn't ready for fame - that it could be a victim of its own success. “If consumers want social enterprise, companies will claim to be social enterprise,” he said, explaining that kitemarks and legal definitions would ensure that only genuine social enterprises would be able to benefit from the sector's positive image. Alison's view was more straightforward: “if it looks like a duck, and sounds like a duck, it probably is a duck,” she pointed out, not unreasonably, before arguing that any company which looked like an authentic social enterprise deserved to use the name.

All four speakers at the event, sponsored by Edge Upstarts and the New Statesman, are experts on social enterprise, but their perspectives on how the sector should move forward are very different, so the debate was a pretty lively one. However, they all share a passion for social enterprise – despite appearances! – and the audience was left in no doubt that, whichever path social enterprise takes, the future is looking bright.

Listen to the podcast.

More photos on flikr soon.

Feedback after the event:

“The evening was fascinating, it’s not often we get the opportunity to have an open debate on the bigger issues. One thing that struck me was that we’ve come a long way. Having said that I had to smile when a statement from the floor had us with a Premier League [of social enterprise businesses] leaving everyone behind. I am sure we'll get there, but as for now, only in my dreams do we have a Premier League, although I love the fact that people think we’re already so successful!" Allison Ogden-Newton, chief executive, SEL

“I think we had a really good debate. It confirmed for me that social enterprise is the business model for the 21st Century and we have to keep lighting the fire everyday to get more and more people into our movement” Jonathan Bland, chief executive, SEC

“Is the only way up? There are two sides to every mountain. Yes, we are riding high, but once you’re up there you need something defensible, lasting and not self-serving. All these things are real dangers. It’s like Mandela said “It’s not our weaknesses we should fear but our strengths”. If we’re as successful as we want to be, we must be ready to protect the integrity and value of the brand. But right now what we have is an incredible popular shift, a social movement towards people wanting to act as social entrepreneurs. That is worth nurturing and growing.” Cliff Prior, chief executive, UnLtd

“Often products or services that have a social, green or ethical value may require some sort of subsidy to compete, initially at least. The big question for government and others is how do you create the right sort of subsidy to market the social enterprise product or service to a level where it would be able to compete in the mainstream marketplace in a way which will be self-sustaining” Tim West, editor, Social Enterprise Magazine

“The venue was very intimate, not like a meeting hall or lecture theatre, more like a club. It was stimulating to talk and answer questions in this atmosphere and it sparked my imagination.” Nigel Kershaw, chairman, The Big Issue Foundation

“The evening was very encouraging. There are a lot of challenges ahead for the social enterprise industry but hopefully also plenty of people to inspire and drive the movement forward” Amy Carter, co-founder, Bespoke Experience

“There’s a belief that social enterprise is just something that happens in a local community. The challenge is to tap into the global market and use economies of scale. The role of government is an important issue. It’s also a question of definition. You don’t call every company that uses a computer an IT company and likewise I’d like to get the process of social entrepreneurship into the mainstream as a function or a tool. Hopefully one day we’ll no longer talk about it as a separate category as it’ll be everywhere” Zair Al-Beyerty

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