UK Social Enterprise of the Year 2014 finalists announced
Ten organisations – ranging from a social enterprise supporting jobseekers with disabilities to an environmentally friendly bottled water company – have been shortlisted for the Social Enterprise of the Year Award at the National Business Awards 2014.
The social ventures have been selected for their successes in addressing a variety of social and environmental needs and for demonstrating excellence in all aspects of enterprise including innovation, staff engagement and financial performance.
Dame Helen Alexander, chair of judges for the National Busness Awards, said: "These finalists represent some of the most innovative and inspiring businesses, entrepreneurs and social enterprises the UK has to offer."
Founder and director of Evenbreak, the not-for-profit social enterprise helping to connect disabled jobseekers with potential employers and one of this year's finalists, gave some valuable advice to aspiring social enterprises. "Ensure that everything you do is with the beneficiaries in mind," she said.
"In our case, our beneficiaries are disabled people. So we only employ disabled people, we consult with disability groups, we have disabled people advise us, so that every decision is made by and for the same group of people."
Fellow nominee, Give as you Live's head of communications, Steff Lewis, said: "Good timing is essential. Always keep a firm focus on your marketplace to ensure you're moving with it and, where possible, pre-empting change within it."
Give as you Live is the innovative online platform that connects shoppers with retailers such as Amazon and Expedia, who have signed up to donate a commission on every online purchase registered shoppers make to a charity of their choice. They have so far raised just under £5m for a number of different charities.
City Healthcare Partnership (CHCP) is another of the shortlisted organisations. It is a community interest company (CIC) providing community health and integrated social care services to over half a million local people in Hull, the East Riding of Yorkshire and Knowsley, Merseyside. Andrew Burnell, chief executive at CHCP, told Pioneers Post about the most important lesson in business the CIC has learnt over the past 12 months.
"The value of being a co-owned business cannot be overstated. Engaged and motivated staff who have a degree of ownership, accountability and responsibility in a company will want to make sure that it’s the best and most successful it can be," she said.
The winner of the Social Enterprise of the Year award will be announced at the awards ceremony, which is to be held at Grosvenor House on London's prestigious Park Lane later in the year.
Header image: Last year's National Business Award winners
Photo credit: National Business Awards
