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New generation of social entrepreneurs gear up to inspire the nation

CABINET OFFICE News Release (CAB/087/07) issued by The Government News Network on 15 November 2007

Please see bottom of Press Notice for list of events attended by Government Ministers on the day.

New generation of social entrepreneurs gear up to inspire the nation
Ministers across Government are set to join forces with social entrepreneurs up and down the country in a day of events to inspire a new generation to work for or set up businesses with social or environmental goals.

Hundreds of pupils and young people across England are taking part in events celebrating the achievements of social entrepreneurs, and in keeping with the youth theme of this year's Social Enterprise Day the Government is announcing that GCSE business studies students will study social enterprise as a core part of the syllabus from September 2008.
In addition, thousands of aspiring and existing social enterprises will benefit from a new guide offering specialist business information and advice, being launched today on Businesslink.gov.

As part of other activities happening on Social Enterprise Day, thousands of votes are expected to be cast online today as young people choose their favourite idea to change the world, expressed in just one minute, in Make Your Mark in 60 Seconds - a competition led by the Government-backed Make Your Mark campaign to promote enterprise to young people and hosted by the social networking site bebo. The winner, to be announced at 18.00 today by Cabinet Office Minister Phil Hope and Enterprise Minister Stephen Timms, will receive a £5,000 Award from UnLtd to make their idea happen. The second phase of the competition will then start - challenging young people all over the country to come up with their own 60 second pitch to change lives.

Another exciting initiative - a Commission for Youth Social Entrepreneurship, the first ever youth-led organisation to represent social enterprise - is also due to be launched today at a Treasury-hosted event attended by Cabinet Office Ministers Ed Miliband and Phil Hope and Treasury Minister Jane Kennedy.

Cabinet Office Minister Ed Miliband said:

"The enthusiasm with which social enterprise is being embraced around the country reflects the desire among many - especially young people - to be more ethical in their choices and actions. I want to see a new generation of social entrepreneurs inspired to dedicate themselves to a way of doing business that combines making money with having a significant positive impact on our communities and environment.

"Just one year on from the launch of the Government's Social Enterprise Action Plan, I am delighted with the progress we've made - from getting social enterprise onto the GCSE business studies syllabus, to appointing ambassadors like The Apprentice's Tim Campbell to champion social enterprise in classrooms and boardrooms alike.

"We are in the foothills of what the social enterprise movement can achieve, and I welcome the progress being made by departments across Government to embrace social enterprises and their capacity to profoundly change society for the better."

Phil Hope, Minister for the Third Sector, including social enterprise, said:

"As Minister responsible for social enterprise it is my mission to see today's social enterprises turn into a wave of businesses which are changing lives and society while turning a profit. The Government is working to achieve that by raising awareness of what social enterprises can achieve, inspiring young people to seek a career in social enterprise and equipping them with relevant knowledge and skills, while providing better access to finance and information for the current and would-be social entrepreneurs already out there."

Jonathan Bland, chief executive of the Social Enterprise Coalition said:

"Social Enterprise Day is a great opportunity for us to showcase the power of using business as a tool to tackle social and environmental issues, while celebrating the work of thousands of incredible social enterprises right across the UK.

"We are extremely happy that social enterprise will definitely be a core part of the GCSE business studies syllabus from next year. We know that young people want to combine their ambition to succeed with their passion to change the world and teaching about them social enterprise at an early age gives them a real opportunity to do that."

Exactly one year on from the launch of the Government's Social Enterprise Action Plan, the Cabinet Office also published today a series of "think pieces" written by five leading social and business thinkers including Charles Leadbeater. The authors assess the long term role of social enterprise in the context of ethical markets, social value innovation and employment with the aim of generating debate and ideas for future government policy.

TOP FIVE FACTS ABOUT SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

1. There are an estimated 55,000 social enterprises in the UK.*

2. The combined turnover of social enterprise is estimated to be £27 billion a year with a contribution to GDP of around £8.4 billion.*

3. Divine Chocolate is the 2007 national social enterprise of the year.

4. Well known social enterprises include Cafedirect, The Big Issue, The Co-operative Group, the Eden Project and Jamie Oliver's Fifteen.

5. Social enterprise is defined as a 'business with primarily social objectives whose surpluses are principally reinvested for that purpose in the business or in the community, rather than being driven by the need to maximise profit for shareholders and owners'.

*Facts 1 and 2 derived from data in the 2005 Annual Small Business Survey.

ENDS

Notes to editors:.

1. For further information on this story please contact Emma Heywood at the Cabinet Office press office on 020 7276 3472 or Steve Coomber on 020 7276 0836.

2. Social Enterprise Day is part of Enterprise Week (12-18 November), a national celebration of enterprise in all its forms with thousands of events and activities happening across the UK. It is part of the Make Your Mark campaign to create an enterprise culture in the UK, run by Enterprise Insight (Ei) and backed by government. For more information about the Make Your Mark campaign and Make Your Mark in 60 Seconds, please contact Amy MacLaren at Colman Getty on 020 7631 2666.

3. Enterprise Insight is working with the Office of the Third Sector, based in the Cabinet Office, the Social Enterprise Coalition (SEC), and a wider partnership including What If, UnLtd and many others to drive forward the Make Your Mark: Change Lives campaign to raise awareness of social enterprise among young people.

4. For more information about the Social Enterprise Coalition and the Social Enterprise Ambassadors, please contact Katy Duke on 020 7793 2318 or visit the following websites: http://www.socialenterprise.org.uk; http://www.socialenterpriseambassdors.org.uk

5. For more information about the Commission for Youth Social Entrepreneurship launching today, please contact Justine Law at UnLtd on 020 7566 1118.

6. The Government's Social Enterprise action plan: Scaling New Heights, was launched by Gordon Brown, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 17 November 2006. Please refer to Cabinet Office press release CAB/0678/06. The action plan is available on the Office of the Third Sector website at http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/upload/assets/www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/third_sector/se_action_plan_2006.pdf

7. A flyer outlining the Government's progress against the Social Enterprise action plan is downloadable at http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/the_third_sector

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