Social enterprises are dynamic organisations that are run along business lines but with a social purpose and where any profits are reinvested into the community or into service developments. A wide range of industries is involved in new social enterprises which integrate financial, social and environmental considerations, rather than being driven by the need to maximise profit for shareholders and owners.
Encouraging social enterprise in health and social care is a key part of the government’s patient-led reforms, offering patients and users a greater choice from a wider selection of convenient, innovative and responsive services. This means that services are better tailored to meet patients' and service users' needs and are based on expert knowledge of a particular area.
Acton Shapiro has over 10 years’ experience in successfully supporting innovations in both health and social care, including social enterprises. We can offer a team of experienced professionals, many of whom have previously worked in the NHS. Specific areas in which we have expertise are:
- Project planning
- Preparation of Outline and Full Business Cases
- Option appraisals
- Consultation processes – with your staff, other health partners, patients, carers and the general public
- Advising on potential pitfalls – and opportunities
- Reviewing legality and corporate governance issues
- Transition planning.
In one example, we have recently assisted a major group of 10 GP Practices in the Bradford area to establish a Social Enterprise, including development of a Business Plan and a submission for funding support. The group is currently applying for start-up monies to develop innovative patient care pathways among the practices.
If you would like to discuss this aspect of our work, please get in touch with either Richard Banyard or Liz Newbronner.
Another commission which links to this area of work is the evaluation which Acton Shapiro has been appointed to carry out for NESTA and the Young Foundation. The project will run over five years and has been designed to examine both the Health Innovation Accelerator - as a model for promoting and supporting social innovation - and the impact of the new social ventures in terms of improving the lives of people with long-term conditions. For more information on this evaluation, please click here.