Social Enterprise Unit, Department of Health

Stand number: 73

Social Enterprise Unit, Department of Health - Social Enterprise in Health and Social Care

The Social Enterprise Unit (SEU) at the Department of Health was established in 2006 to support social enterprises in health and social care.

Showcase content:

Showcasing the innovation of social enterprise in health and social care, the Department of Health, together with Futurebuilders England and St. Luke’s Healthy Living Centre, will illustrate how social enterprise is making valuable contributions to promoting service quality, addressing health inequalities and transforming community services. Social enterprises
can give health professionals the freedom to design and manage the services they deliver to better meet the needs of users and the community.

Find out more about the staff ‘right to request’ to set up a social enterprise to provide services, the availability of funding and support from the £100m Social Enterprise Investment Fund and learn more about the practical side of social enterprise from St. Luke’s Healthy Living Centre, a pioneering social enterprise in Southend on Sea.

Contact:

Gillian Peacock
Gillian.peacock@dh.gsi.gov.uk

To find out more about the Department of Health’s policy on social enterprise in health and social care, visit www.dh.gov.uk/socialenterprise.

To find out more about the £100m Social Enterprise Investment Fund, visit www.dh.gov.uk/seif.

To find out more about Futurebuilders England, visit:

www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk

Partners:

Futurebuilders England

Futurebuilders England, in partnership with Partnerships UK, manage the £100m Social Enterprise Investment Fund, on behalf of the Department of Health. Futurebuilders England is the largest social investor in the UK. Its aim is to substantially improve the financial and strategic capability of the Third Sector so that it can play an ever greater role in improving the lives of the people and communities it serves.

St. Luke’s Healthy Living Centre

St. Luke’s Healthy Living Centre, with support from the Social Enterprise Investment Fund, will soon transform local health and well-being in Southend on Sea by creating a dynamic community hub that not only meets health needs, but promotes healthy living and fosters community cohesion. The developing portolio includes counselling services, fitness activities, and a community-run allotment, as well as a community business and enterprise support unit to help local residents kick-start their own social enterprises or small businesses. The Centre will open in 2011.