- Sectors
- Social Enterprise & Investment
The Social Enterprise Investment Fund
The Social Enterprise Investment Fund (SEIF) provides investment to help existing and emerging social enterprises grow and improve their services.
The £100m Fund was set up in 2007 by the Department of Health to stimulate expansion in the role of social enterprise in the provision of health and social care. The Social Enterprise Investment Fund is managed on the behalf of the Department of Health by The Social Investment Business, working in partnership with Local Partnerships. Local Partnerships specialise in supporting individuals and organisations to access SEIF some of whom may choose to use the Right to Request.
Individuals or organisations that can apply to SEIF include multi-agency partnerships, existing social enterprises, and groups of professionals, such as nurses or therapists, seeking to form a social enterprise to deliver their services.
The SEIF provides customised and specific support to meet the needs of aspiring and existing social enterprises, enabling them to access business support, grants, loans and equity investments from a few thousand pounds to several million in order to support:
- activities and advice around setting up or developing Social Enterprise
- innovative health and social care products and services
- working capital, development and capital expenditure
- ongoing development of the business, such as tender preparation, feasibility studies etc
- navigating the Right to Request process.
The Right to Request
The ‘Right to Request’ enables frontline staff employed by Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) to set up a social enterprise to deliver healthcare services to NHS patients free at the point of delivery. It entitles primary and community care staff to put a business case to their PCT board to set up independent social enterprises and to have their case considered. If approved, the PCT will support the development of the social enterprise and award it a 3-5 year contract to provide services.
Any member of staff or group of staff, from a small service line to a whole PCT provider arm can exercise their right to request. Staff would transfer to the new provider organisation under TUPE, which means that existing terms and conditions of employment would be statutorily protected at the point of transfer. Furthermore, staff transferring under Right to Request may retain access to the NHS pension if they transfer to a Charity, Community Interest Company, Industrial and Provident Society or any other not-for-profit enterprise - with any profit being principally reinvested in services or the wider community, amongst other conditions.
Understanding Social Investment with ACEVO
ACEVO (Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations) recently published "Understanding Social Investment" which seeks to explain social investment, why it matters and what might be done if social investment is to have a profound and lasting impact on the economy, our public services and wider society. Dan Greogory of Local Partnerships authored the second chapter of the publication.
Click here to read Understanding Social Investment
Contact
For further information on Social Enterprise, Right to Request or SEIF contact:
Ayo Osunsanya
Email: ayo.osunsanya@localpartnerships.org.uk
Tel: 020 7296 6635
Dan Gregory
Email: dan.gregory@localpartnerships.org.uk
Tel: 020 7296 6647
