SOCIAL ENTERPRISES DELIVERING MORE

What we do
Social enterprise in action

HCT, the transport business run by ambassador Dai Powell, generates a healthy annual turnover of more than £20 million, safely delivering more than 10 million passenger journeys each year, from London double-deckers to school bus services in Leeds , through public sector contracts won in open competition with private sector market leaders.

As well as competing on price with some of the biggest players in the market, HCT re-invests surpluses back into the communities where they are earned. Just one example can be seen in Leeds where HCT won the contract to provide school bus services without receiving any credit for the extra work they are doing to keep Leeds moving: they use the profit from the contract to financially support Leeds Alternative Travel which provides both community transport to third sector groups and a community car scheme for older and disabled people.

As a result of its commercial contracts, HCT Group can provide the £80k that Leeds Alternative Travel needs to keep operating each year - over the last 6 months alone  this support has made  nearly 17,000 passenger trips possible for elderly and disabled people  around Leeds, ensuing that some of the most isolated groups can get out and about and have a better quality of life.

Find out more about HCT here
 

What we do
Social enterprise in action

Sunlight is a community hub housing voluntary organisations, a medical centre, a family centre, pharmacy, café, community radio station, recording studio and rehearsal rooms, and flexible meeting rooms.  It delivers a range of services to the public sector.  In 2008, through an open commercial tender, Café Sunlight was awarded a five year contract to provide catering services to Medway Council.  However, it was impossible for the Council team to give credit when assessing its bid for the additional impact it was committed to delivering.

Sunlight has already had significant success in delivering against its Local Area Agreements.  Through a range of activities, it has qualified 25 NEETs, 23 of whom are now in permanent employment; enabled the rehabilitation of 20 serving young offenders from Rochester Young Offenders Institute; used spent food oil to power its delivery vehicles and reduced its carbon footprint and provided healthier options for customers and council employees, positively impacting on their health and wellbeing.  These additional outcomes will reduce the burden on other public services, such as hospital admissions and prison numbers.

Find out more about Sunlight and download their social impact report here

P3 is an organisation that focuses entirely around the needs of vulnerable people.  Clients are involved in every aspect of its development and true to social enterprise operations, profits are fed back into the business.  It provides a range of preventative services across a spectrum of needs which alleviates pressure on local public services.  Many of the operating surpluses made from its delivery of public sector contracts are fed into additional services.

One example is P3’s purchase Crisis House. Using operating surpluses from its public service delivery contracts, it provides a long term, sustainable, non-institutional and homely community resource that delivers personalised positive outcomes for the women who use the service. It also provides more for less in terms of Social Return On Investment.  Had P3 not purchased the building, developed local partnerships and joint working protocols, this  alternative to admission service simply would not exist.

Another example is Sandwell P3’s women's mental health crisis house.  It is a direct alternative to acute hospital admissions and/or criminal justice sanctions.  It meets the policy aims of avoiding unnecessary and costly hospital admissions whenever possible, reduces re-offending and provides individualised outcomes and focused support services which are co-assessed and planned in partnership with each service use.

Find out more about P3 here.