Have you ever run a business that benefits the community? It may sound unusual but there are plenty of enterprises around that do just that.
Recently I was asked by Sue Jordan of Sue Jordan UK and Glenys Armstrong of Community First to come and present to their group on the topic of ‘Setting up a social enterprise’.
Now Social Enterprise is was not an expert area of mine but setting up and running a business is. This is what the subject of my talk focused on.
However, whilst doing my research for this session I learnt quite a lot about this type of business. Indeed, one of the surprising things was that there are very few accountants that know about this these enterprises and how to deal with them. There are also a fair few myths and pitfalls surrounding this type of business.
If you run a business that could potentially be classified as a Social Enterprise you may find that there is funding available to get it going. My suggestion would be to contact Community First. They are currently running a series of free seminars and workshops for people who want to get set up. Even if you only have a ‘good idea’, this is the place to come and takes those thoughts that step further.
Social Enterprise Wiltshire also have their own Facebook page It is a great community and source of information.
PAH Accounting have agreed to become a mentor at the workshops and I will be available to answer any questions people may have. This will include sessions at the workshops as well as Skype, telephone or office consultations at other times.
We are also looking to gain more clients in this sector as we have now built up an extensive knowledge portfolio and have started acting for several CIC’s in particular. So if you know anyone looking to get themselves set up then get them to contact us for a free consultation.