Walk that line: Suit or Sandals or Suit with Sandals.

Walk that line: Suit or Sandals or Suit with Sandals.
First Posted:Thursday, April 24, 2008

There is interest in the setting up of Community Interest companies in Cumbria associated with Energy - (Energy Coast paper (see previous blogrant)).
An agency was approached to gauge interest and I suppose ultimately some funding. The response, though positive, ended: ‘The problem …. with Social Enterprises is what they do in a Gross Value Added (GVA) model.  Not for Profit companies don't contribute much to The Economy……’

Community Interest companies have better buy in and more success over private 'incomers' - so why the caveat?

Superficially the agency is correct. Not for Profit companies shouldn't contribute losses to the economy. However there are quite a few For Profit companies (big ones too - Northern Rock – to name but one) that have not contributed much to the GVA. (Work through that last sentence again before moving on – it's a wee bit convoluted but I think I know what I mean).

It's a very fine line to walk:  the one between profit seeking, sharp suited entrepreneurs and sandaled, socialist do-gooders. The former is seen as dodgy to fund and the latter is also dodgy; but for different reasons. The fact is that government agencies would rather give money to the profit seeking, sharp suited entrepreneur.

Social Enterprises are not agencies redirecting public money for a fee. (Agencies that sometimes spend less on themselves than the money they are given to redistribute). Social Enterprise are sustainable - not for loss (as I prefer to call them) organizations meeting their own costs and able to make a difference and add to the GVA whilst putting any profits back into other social ventures or repaying the funder. They need to have all the controls and processes that normal businesses have – where sensible and appropriate of course. However their focus is to provide jobs and services for the common good and pay fairly its employees and supply partners.

On a GVA basis I would do away with all government funded agencies and just let me decide who gets the money.

Rant over for today.