Social Enterprise Manifesto aiming for a ‘fairer economy’ in Hackney set for launch

Social Enterprise UK awarded Hackney official Social Enterprise Borough status last year . Photograph: Gary Manhine

A new Social Enterprise Manifesto is to be launched on 15 November by a local business support agency.

Hackney Co-operative Developments has coordinated the preparation and launch of the document, which “aims to bring together individuals and organisations with an interest in growing a fairer and more sustainable economy in Hackney.”

Individuals and organisations are invited to sign the manifesto and support its values.

These include the belief that “it is possible to use our entrepreneurial energy and spending power to create a fairer society with less inequality”.

The Manifesto goes on to “envision a society that is built upon caring for ourselves, each other and the planet, where diversity is valued and everyone has an equal opportunity to flourish” .

The Manifesto includes three main aims:

• “To establish and promote the borough as a major UK centre of social enterprise activity and development; and promote greater awareness and understanding of social enterprise among all Hackney’s stakeholders.
• “To grow Hackney’s Social Enterprise Sector so that it plays a significant, visible and inspiring role in the local economy, generating high levels of social, environmental and economic impact and engaging local young adults and people from other disenfranchised groups as leaders, users, members, volunteers, supporters and/or employees.
• “To develop a collaborative partnership and coherent platform of professional business support capable of fostering the borough’s future social enterprise leaders and promoting the development of a high-performing, robust, sustainable social enterprise sector.”

‘Hackney Is Social: A Social Enterprise Manifesto for Hackney’ will be formally inaugurated at a conference to be held on 15 November.

The Manifesto is the culmination of a two-year project that began with preparations for Hackney to apply to be recognised as a Social Enterprise Borough.

In November 2017, Hackney was formally awarded this status by Social Enterprise UK, and it is currently one of only 26 Social Enterprise Places across the country; Hackney and Greenwich are the only such places in London.

A consultation process then led to the development of the manifesto to be launched this month.

Social enterprises are businesses that exist for a social purpose rather than just to make profit.

The majority of profits from a social enterprise are reinvested into the business or spent directly on activities that directly benefit society.

Social enterprises ensure their assets, such as property, will never fall into private hands and will always be used for community purposes.

To sign up to the manifesto, head to socialenterprise1.typeform.com

For more information, visit hackneyissocial.coop