What is a social enterprise?
A social enterprise fulfils a social purpose and trades for the benefit of society, the community or environment.
Whilst a social enterprise is a not for profit organisation this does not mean they should not be profitable. In fact, a social enterprise must look to make a profit in order to continue their activities and become sustainable. However it is what it does with the profits that is important. Whilst you will be able to withdraw a salary, revenue needs to be reinvested or redistributed for the social benefit of the community/beneficiaries or environment.
Examples of national well known social enterprises include: Big Issue, The Eden Project and Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen.