News, events and awards
News
RISE (the voice for South West social enterprise) is undertaking a piece of research to find out about organisations that are driven by a social or environmental objective, and earn income by providing services or products, either to a paying customer or under a public sector contract. Please take a few minutes to complete the survey. You could win a fantastic hamper worth £100!
The monthly Social Enterprise Network newsletter, published by NHS Networks, covers all the news on social enterprise in health and care. It is distributed to all members of the Social Enterprise Network.
Social Enterprise is the UK's first monthly magazine devoted to providing accessible, comprehensive news and practical help for everyone interested in social enterprise. Regular email updates available upon registration.
Awards
Ashoka – United Kingdom Having worked across the world since 1980, Ashoka, the global social entrepreneurship organisation, now has a programme to support social entrepreneurs to thrive in the UK as Ashoka Fellows. Next closing date: ongoing.
The Disabled Entrepreneur Award is run by Leonard Cheshire and Stelios Haji-Ioannou. They are looking for a disabled entrepreneur who has shown that the barriers placed in the way of disabled people have not stopped them in their quest for success in business. The winning disabled entrepreneur will get a cheque for £50,000 at the British Chamber of Commerce's prestigious Chamber Awards ceremony. Next closing date: to be confirmed, 2008.
The Edge Upstarts Awards recognise excellence in all aspects of social enterprise, including their vital contribution to training and practical learning. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
The Enterprising Solutions Awards recognise and celebrate the UK's best social and community enterprises. Entries are welcomed from social enterprises that can prove a commitment to social change, their positive impact on society and/or environment, and innovation in the way the business operates or meets social and/or environmental needs. The overall winner will receive a cash prize of £10,000; three other finalists will receive £5,000. Next closing date: 1 July 2008.
The Entrepreneur of the Year Awards are run by Ernst & Young, and include an award for Social Entrepreneur of the Year. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
The Flying Start Programme for Social Enterprises in Health is a 12-month programme, which aims to help individuals with a qualiifcation from a UK university, college or institution to turn their idea into a social enterprise. Delivered and supported by a team of seasoned entrepreneurs and business professionals, the programme will help you to develop your business skills and prepare you for running a social enterprise.
In the Global Social Venture Competition, entrant teams from around the world compete annually for over $45,000 in cash and travel prizes. This year, the Grand Prize of $25,000 will be awarded to the plan that achieves the best blended value (high economic and social returns). Next closing date: 16 January, 2008.
The Guardian Public Services Awards. Has your team delivered excellence in a particular public service? Have they been thinking creatively about meeting people’s needs? However they have made a positive impact, The Guardian wants to hear about it. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
The Health Foundation aims to improve health and the quality of health care for the people of the UK. It offers a range of award schemes, funds projects to test out new ways of improving the quality and performance of health services and commission research that builds the evidence for quality improvement. Next closing date: ongoing.
The Health and Social Care Awards exist to highlight and celebrate innovation and excellence across health and social care, and to recognise and encourage working together across organisations and professions, with service users and local populations. Run in partnership between the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement and the Department of Health, the Awards provide an unparalleled opportunity to highlight and celebrate innovation and excellence in the provision of frontline health and social care. Closing date: 8 February, 2008.
The HSJ Awards are the biggest awards in health services. Categories include care services, mental health, reducing health inequalities, innovation, skills development, and good corporate citizenship. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
The IMPACT Awards offer awards up to £35,000 in unrestricted funding plus high-level recognition. Managed by GlaxoSmithKline in partnership with the King’s Fund, this scheme recognises charities that are doing excellent work to improve people’s health. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
New Entrepreneur Scholarships help people living in disadvantaged areas to start and develop in business. The programme helps them to overcome the difficulties they face by providing a comprehensive package of support, mentoring and finance. All business ideas within reason are supported, and social enterprise ideas are particularly welcomed. Next closing date: varies by region.
The Observer Ethical Awards are for outstanding people and campaigns that have been inspired by the progression of social and/or environmental justice, and focused on solutions that will make the world a greener, fairer and more equitable place. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
The Oxford University 21st Century Challenge is an international entrepreneurship competition for bold and innovative business ideas that can help to solve some of the key challenges of the 21st Century. The goal of the competition is to promote the creation of sustainable new business ventures that combine financial returns with social and environmental benefits. Prizes of £65,000 are available, with three challenge tracks: Tomorrow's Planet, Tomorrow's People and Tomorrow's Wealth. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
The Queen's Awards for Enterprise are for outstanding business performance. Winners receive a range of benefits including worldwide recognition and extensive press coverage. Next closing date: 31 October, 2007.
Social Entrepreneur of the Year is an initiative of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, in association with The Independent and the Boston Consulting Group. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
The Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship support social entrepreneurs whose work has the potential for large-scale influence on critical challenges of our time. The Awards provide later-stage, or mezzanine, funding, which is generally structured as a $1 million award paid out over three years. In most cases, the grant is provided for core support to help organisations expand their programs and capacity to deliver long-term, sustainable equilibrium change. Next closing date: tbc, 2008.
UnLtd Millennium Awards provide practical and financial support to individual social entrepreneurs in the United Kingdom. Level 1 Awards are designed to help make new ideas become real projects (1,000 per year); Level 2 Awards support people whose ideas are already developed or pay for the living expenses of Award Winners to help them devote more time to their projects. Next closing dates: check web site.