At a time like now, when employment rates are far from soaring and more and more people are turning to self-employment, social enterprises are becoming more important. First things first, what are social enterprises? Well, they are businesses where profits are reinvested into the business or the local community and the objectives are primarily social or environmental. Unlike most other businesses, any profits made by social enterprises are not paid to the shareholders or owners.

You may be thinking that this must cover a small minority of businesses out there…but you’d be wrong! The social enterprise sector is diverse and includes organisations like community enterprises, housing associations, development trusts and cooperatives. As you can see, they are not just limited to one or two industry sectors either, ranging from health and social care to renewable energy.

This is all well and good, but how is all this relevant to you? We think that a lot of you out there might be interested in running a social enterprise yourself! If this is the case, you’re in the right place. The first thing to do is find something you feel passionate about, whether it is the environment or the well being of elderly and vulnerable people in your local community.

After this, the key to success is research, research and, yep you’ve guessed it, more research! The next step is to decide what business structure your social enterprise will take: a limited company, charitable incorporated organisation (a new name for a charity), a co-operative, an industrial and provident society, a community interest company, a sole trader or a business partnership.

Financing your social enterprise is another big issue that mustn’t be forgotten about when you are planning your business. Writing a business plan is a great idea so that you can present these plans to potential investors or loan providers. When looking for financial backing for your social enterprise, keep in mind that more and more Charitable trusts and foundations are looking to invest in social enterprises at the moment. Besides this, there are the more traditional finance providers like banks and building societies. Another option to investigate is government-backed funding through particular schemes for social enterprises. The more options you look at and apply to, the greater your chances of finding some funding are.

Remember, it’s not all plain sailing even though you’re not trying to pocket big profits for yourself. Social enterprises face the same challenges and risks as other businesses with which they are competing. With drive and determination, however, many people make a great success of their social enterprises and have a fulfilling and interesting career!