When we set up the Social Enterprise Coalition, I confess I was largely focused on the UK agenda – getting social enterprise established as a business model, inserting ourselves into the policy agenda of government and with all political parties, and achieving some practical outcomes such as transforming public services, the Community Investment Company and social investment. Europe was not top of the agenda. I now think its time for the UK social enterprise sector to look to Brussels.
Right now, I believe there is a significant window of opportunity to influence the social business agenda and make a difference in a way this directly affects the UK and spread the success of our movement across the European Union.
Two urgent matters. The European Commission is consulting on changing the procurement directive , which affects every social enterprise that trades in public sector markets (the deadline is 18 April). Brussels is also planning to introduce a social business initiative , drawing on ideas from the UK (in particular social investment) and they could put social enterprise at the heart of a new social innovation agenda. The consequences of economic crisis that followed the banking crash means it is no longer business as usual, creating employment and tackling poverty are higher up the agenda. In addition, there are challenges of Europe's ageing population and climate change. The last time the social dimension was so pronounced at EU level must have been almost 20 years ago.
There are three very good reasons for the UK social enterprise movement to get involved:
• We should have influence over the rules and regulations that affect us.
• We should influence the billions of euros that the EU spends to get more support for the growth of social enterprise solutions.
• We should work with others to share the knowledge about our business models and to learn new things.
I have just spent two days in Brussels meeting officials from the commission who have responsibility for the single market, enterprise and employment, and it was very clear that we about to miss the train. Right now, they are deciding the broad allocation of budgets, new programme priorities for the structural funds, and the framework programme. Don't let your eyes glaze over. If we can make a successful interjection at this stage, there could be a more enabling procurement regime, European funds for social investment and social innovation and new measures to support social enterprises that create jobs and opportunity.
The challenge is that there appears to be no common voice that represents social enterprise in its many faceted forms in Brussels. Indeed there is considerable fragmentation between those representing the traditional social economy (co-operatives, mutuals, associations and foundations) and new groupings of social entrepreneurs and wider civil society organisations that engage in trading.
One of the reasons that many people have remarked that the UK is leading the way on social enterprise is that we overcame that problem many years ago through our joint working and having one voice. Commissioner Michel Barnier's social business initiative is drawing on our experience. The Young Foundation has been very effectively championing social innovation. The call to promote social innovation has been taken up by the Euclid network of civil society leaders, but we need much greater critical mass and co-operation to be effective in making major change.
Social enterprise needs a strong European voice. It feels to me that the time is right. Is this an invitation to all those in the UK with a vision for social enterprise to work for a new alliance to shape the next steps to promote social enterprise in Europe? Yes I think it is.
Jonathan Bland runs Social Business International which specialises in knowledge transfer and innovation in the field of social enterprise. Email: Jonathan.Bland@socialbusinessint.com
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