Healthy business: a guide to social enterprise in health and social care will illustrate how the social enterprise model can empower health workers and patients to tackle deep-rooted issues such as NHS bureaucracy, reaching the poorest in the community and low staff morale.
The report, which follows extensive research by a joint team from the Social Enterprise Coalition and industry legal specialists Hempsons, takes an indepth look at nine case studies, highlighting the diverse range of social enterprises operating in these emerging markets and their fresh approaches to service delivery.
Healthy business also offers advice on setting up or commissioning from a social enterprise in the health sector.
Social enterprises are businesses that trade for a social purpose, reinvesting the majority of profits into the community. There are currently around 55,000 social enterprises in the UK with a combined turnover of £27bn per year, which employ half a million people and contribute almost 1% of annual GDP.
The guide will be launched to an audience of key health policy makers, including Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt, representatives from primary care trusts, local authorities, GPs, health professionals and professional bodies from across the UK at a reception in London on Monday 26 March.
