Social Firms UK

We have been alerted to a scam that is being directed to Social Firms and Small Social Enterprises – John Charles of Catering2order was targeted this morning.

Update: On 30 July 2010 Dee-Tex received a similar call - this time the scammers claimed to work for Chester Police with a similar offer.

 The government is calling on Social Firms to help it get hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people into work. Our CEO, Sally Reynolds, is featured in Social Enterprise Magazine (online edition) discussing work with the government to create employment for the most vulnerable people in the labour market. Sally is the only social enterprise representative in the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Social Inclusion Advisory group and is therefore ideally placed to ensure the Social Firm sector is well positioned in the move to job creation, rather than job placement.

CEO of Social Firms UK  Sally Reynolds has been made a member of the Department for Work and Pensions social inclusion advisory group- the only representative of the social enterprise sector. 

The new Coalition Government is 'desperate' for job creation initiatives and is working with Social Firms UK to ensure that there is''job creation, rather than job placement', for those most disadvantaged in the labour market.

The European Social Firms of the Year Awards, which took place during the Social Firms UK and Social Firms Europe CEFEC annual conference, celebrated some of the fantastic work taking place across Europe was showcased and celebrated in style.  Those winners in full:- Best Overall winner 2010: Oxford Wood Recycling Ltd, UK

The Equality Bill, which passed through parliament last Tuesday, will impact on all of us in some way – as individuals, employers, consumers of public services, and bidders for public sector contracts. The Bill is wide-ranging but here are some highlights that Social Firms may be particularly interested in.

Yesterday's Nacro conference, The Future Role of the Voluntary Sector in the Criminal Justice System, was a missed opportunity for Labour to set out their agenda for the role of the Third Sector in the CJS; unfortunately the spokesman seemed to be more preoccupied with the overstretched Legal Aid budget.

New guidelines have been issued to the police to help increase the number of prosecutions for hate crimes against people with disabilities.

The Ministry of Justice Third Sector Conference made all the right noises in London last Thursday (4th March).

Our Chief Exec, Sally Reynolds, delivered a keynote speech at the Ministry of Justice Social Enterprise Conference last week. Calling for grant funding for Social Firm start-ups, Sally explained why the Social Firm model could help reduce re-offending by providing an alternative to the demoralising visit to the job centre an offender faces on release.

The 'Give with Care’ campaign is launched this month and aims to help those who want to give to charity identify the genuine charitable appeals amongst the many leaflets and bags that get dropped through their letter boxes.

The Association of Charity Shops estimates that between £2.5 and £3 million is lost to charities through theft and people mistakenly giving unwanted clothing to commercial companies in the belief that they are giving to charity.

The campaign includes four top tips for spotting a genuine charity clothing collection:

Just before Christmas the Government made some policy announcements that could impact on many Social Firms. The Department for Work and Pensions will be: