Written evidence from RISE
This is the submission from RISE which is the
body the voice of the social enterprise community operating across
the south west of England. More information can be found on www.rise-sw.co.uk
The views expressed below are those derived
from recent informal discussions with and input from our Members
including the RISE Board, as well as those informed by the RISE
work over the past six years.
Government states repeatedly that Social Enterprise
is part of the Big Society and social enterprises are first and
fore-mostly businesses. Therefore Local Enterprise Partnerships
(LEPs) need to join up with this aspiration to create a joined
up approach or there will only be rhetoric at the national level
with very little local delivery of this agenda. This will only
be achieved if there are structures that recognise that there
are different ways to do business and that Social Enterprises
represent an important part of that picture, and that they should
therefore be an important contributor, influencer and informer
of the LEPs. Social enterprises "trade for people and planet".
THE FUNCTIONS
OF THE
NEW LOCAL
ENTERPRISE PARTNERSHIPS
AND ENSURING
VALUE FOR
MONEY
It is not at all clear at this stage how the
LEPs will derive their funding and ensure value for money in their
operations. From current information available it would appear
that whilst responsibilities will be deferred from Regional Development
Agency (RDA) level to the new LEPs being established, its also
being suggested that there will be no additional funding available
for the purposes and responsibilities. This is a clear concern
in general economic development terms, but especially in the specific
development of successful social enterprises at a time when the
Government is clearly expecting social enterprises to take a leading
role in service delivery and support for its aspirations around
the Big Society. See comment above.
THE REGIONAL
GROWTH FUND,
AND FUNDING
ARRANGEMENTS UNDER
THE LEP SYSTEM
It is understood that the Regional Growth Fund
will be informed by LEPs and therefore there is a clear danger
that allocation of funds will follow very localised agendas and
not achieve the strategic and collaborative approach to large-scale
investments and economies of scale. This provides some key concerns
for social enterprises, many of which have developed their structures
and support networks based on the regional model, and which would
require significant business re-modelling to establish new links
to LEPs in order to achieve support for Growth investment. It
will also require a huge level of effort for each individual social
enterprise to try to influence its own LEP, whilst trying to run
its own business. The likelihood is that opportunities to maximise
the co-ordination of scare resources will be lost.
GOVERNMENT PROPOSALS
FOR ENSURING
CO -ORDINATION
OF ROLES
BETWEEN DIFFERENT
LEPS
There is no clear indication as yet as to how
the LEPs will be co-ordinated effectively in the interests of
large-scale impact in economic terms. It has been our experience
that on the whole local authorities tend to emphasise the local
at the expense of any co-ordinated approach across district, unitary
and county boundaries. The hands off approach to this centrally
is likely to increase this affect.
The Government needs to ensure that LEPs do
take on board the impact which social enterprises have made and
can actively contribute to the local economy whilst at the same
time achieving social and environmental impact. In the south west
there are many examples which have meant a large-scale change
in social, economic and environmental impact and which are social
enterprises that have worked across boundaries. One example would
be the Eden Project which has benefitted from major investment
but has equally achieved a very significant impact in its work
and its work stretches not only region wide but nationally and
internationally. Other social enterprises that work across local
authority boundaries include co-operatives such Devon Doctors
that are providing out of hours GP services, a model which has
replicated the model elsewhere in the country. Another example
is COSMIC which has also worked extensively with local authorities,
as well as with private sector business and other organisations
in the wider civil sector across the SW, and through its social
objectives to increase digital inclusion.
ARRANGEMENTS FOR
CO -ORDINATING
REGIONAL ECONOMIC
STRATEGY, STRUCTURE
AND ACCOUNTABILITY
OF LEPS
At present a major concern is that none of the
LEPs currently being formed is engaging in discussions with social
enterprises or the networks which represent their interests here
in south west. We are very concerned that the Government which
has high expectations of the role which social enterprises will
play in taking forward initiatives around public services, health
services and the Big society are not being included in the formation
of these important economic partnerships. Therefore it is essential
that the LEPs are given a clear requirement to engage with social
enterprise development in their area and to have a clear role
in accounting for the views of social enterprises see my comments
above re hands-off.
THE LEGISLATIVE
FRAMEWORK AND
TIMETABLE FOR
CONVERTING RDAS
TO LEPS,
THE TRANSITIONAL
ARRANGEMENTS, AND
THE ARRANGEMENTS
FOR RESIDUAL
SPENDING AND
LIABILITY OF
RDAS
There is a clear risk in the timetable being
considered which currently shows a period when the SW RDA will
no longer be in operation, but the new LEPs will equally not have
formed. At present it appears the SW RDA will cease its operations
at some point after April 2011, but the new LEPs will not effectively
be in place until April 2012. What happens in this period (which
could be up to 12 months) is unclear, and could leave social enterprises
without any formal type of support, information and access to
vital networks such as RISE. Any residual spending from the RDA
in the time up until March 2011 should focus on ensuring that
RISE (and other vital networks) are able to continue until the
LEP have been effectively established and are ready to engage
with the support social enterprises in their area need.
MEANS OF
PROCURING FUNDING
FROM OUTSIDE
BODIES (INCLUDING
EU FUNDING) UNDER
THE NEW
ARRANGEMENTS
A major concern here is that social enterprises
have been highly successful in recent years in attracting inward
investment from EU programmes due to their unique contribution
to the triple bottom line (economy, society and environment) and
that this has been supported by the work of the regional bodies
particularly SW RDA and GOSW. This success has been maximised
because of a coordinated approach to policy and guidance that
was agreed with major stakeholders beforehand. If social enterprises
are to be supported by staff employed by new LEPs to carry out
this critical work, then those staff will need to be given the
capacity and skills to link effectively with social enterprises
and to understand which opportunities fit with their ambitions
now and in the future. A failure to address this need will result
in many successful social enterprises which have proved highly
effective and influential in a European context being no longer
able to access the opportunities and support they need to survive.
13 August 2010
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