Supporting social enterprise

Six social enterprise programmes will share more than £637,000 of grant funding – bringing the total invested so far this financial year to £4.9 million.

The programmes will drive forward Scotland’s ten year Social Enterprise Strategy, supporting and encouraging businesses that reinvest their profits to address social change in areas such as homelessness, unemployment, inequality, and climate change.

Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell announced the latest round of funding during a visit to Brewgooder, a craft brewer which recently shipped its one millionth can and invests all of its profits into ending water poverty for one million people in some of the world’s poorest countries. Brewgooder has received £20,000 from the Scottish Government to establish a new headquarters in Edinburgh.

Ms Campbell said:

“Scotland is a world leading social enterprise nation and we are committed to continued investment and support to drive forward social change and improvement, both in our own country and across the world.

“This latest round of funding is part of £4.9 million invested so far this financial year, to support social enterprises in Scotland and deliver our ten year social enterprise strategy.

“I look forward to Scotland’s social enterprise successes being showcased and to further learning from international experiences when the Social Enterprise World Forum returns to Edinburgh next month.”

Brewgooder founder Alan Mahon said:

“Scotland is one of best places in the world to start and grow a social enterprise, and the Scottish Government’s commitment to the sector is world leading.

“Brewgooder has grown 200%, exceeded £500,000 in turnover and helped bring 40,000 people clean drinking water with the help of the Social Enterprise strategy. We are looking to take the next step and internationalise through the support package announced today.”

Background

Scotland’s Social Enterprise Strategy

The six programmes sharing the latest £637,000 funding are:

Community Shares Scotland, delivered by Development Trusts Association Scotland, providing an innovative way for entrepreneurial communities to raise capital locally.

Intrapreneurship in Scotland, delivered by The Lens: Scotland’s only provider of intrapreneurship programmes, helping promote innovation by encouraging entrepreneurial behaviour within organisations across the public and third sector.

Co-Worker Accelerator Network, delivered by The Melting Pot: support to assist in the replication of its business through a franchise model.

Trade Up 2018, delivered by School for Social Entrepreneurs: an innovative scheme which incentivises trading in weaker markets, or where grant dependency is likely.

Partnership for Procurement (P4P), delivered by Senscot in partnership with other third sector organisations: technical support for enterprising third sector organisations to help them bid for and secure more public sector contracts.

The Ethnic Minority Capacity Building Programme, delivered by Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Sector Organisations (CEMVO): providing specialist business support and expertise to BME enterprising communities.

Brewgooder launched on World Water Day 2016. The social enterprise brews a craft lager in a highly efficient and scalable way that allows it to invest 100% of its profits into ending water poverty for 1,000,000 people, through investment in the growth of their impact, and in direct funding, and co-funding, of clean water projects. Brewgooder has funded 60 projects in Malawi so far, reaching over 33,000 people.

Alan Mahon is one of the first 20 entrepreneurs chosen for the First Minister’s ‘Unlocking Ambition’ challenge.