In 2008, following conversations at Pool Innovation Centre and later after meetings in Truro, resonating in my mind was that social enterprise held solutions to a wide range of inequities. En-route to co-establishing Fotonow as a CIC in 2009, the ideas of Bob Northey, a social enterprise development worker in Cornwall, chimed well with my perceived values and social enterprise felt a good shape to grow through.
Now, 15 years later, and with an unbroken exploration of social enterprise through many experiences, as a Director for Plymouth Social Enterprise Network and Jabulani CIC, that conviction for the potential of social enterprise to be an agent of profound social transformation remains. In 2009, Plymouth felt like a wild west of social enterprise, but I’ve watched how its culture has steadily permeated and defines our City.
In 2024, PSEN’s Anti-Racism Plan, seeks to define these values in the potential of transformative action: placing equity, and intentional anti-racist behaviour into the core structure of the enterprise, in support of evolving the values that underpin the network in the membership. To be a fit for purpose Social Enterprise City for the next ten years and beyond, this strategy is a vital foundation for the direction we travel.
Through social enterprise we nurture a culture for our children, and as a father to multiracial English girls, I hope they’ll see an improving Plymouth in which they say to themselves that this is a city I want to grow my business in; a city in which I clearly see myself; a city where young multi-ethnic people are confidently doing enterprise on their terms; a city that supports and vibrates with the multi-ethnic children of rural and urban England.
Social Enterprise in Plymouth must be a conscious part of the solution to the inequity experienced by people of colour. This anti-racism plan provides a compass to clearly consider anti-racist activity within our network. It presents a method to sustain us in being true to our values through making deliberate actions to be an ally against racism. Saying we’re not racist is not enough. Our actions are louder than our words.
Here are some of the recent actions we’ve undertaken to help deliver this plan:
We have taken proactive steps to diversify PSEN’s board of directors. We made direct invitations to representatives of social enterprises who were strong candidates for their business activities, skills and experiences and who identify as global majority or from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic community. See our board of directors here
We’ve been delivering our Barrow Cadbury Connect project for a year. This aims to to encourage more people from underrepresented communities to set up social enterprises and engage in the opportunities our PSEN network offers and also explores how to get more social investment finance and funding for underrepresented communities. For more information click here.
We’ve made proactive steps to visit diverse communities across the city. For example delivering Social Enterprise Safaris with Jabulani and others and attending a breakfast meeting with the Plymouth Romanian Organization to meet potential social entrepreneurs and discuss the social enterprise economy in the city.
We’ve partnered with the SEAS Programme in Plymouth. This gives fully funded social enterprise business advice to all and also includes specific support for social entrepreneurs from global majority or from Black, Asian or other minority ethnic communities.
We’ve promoted anti-racism at some of the wider, city strategic forums and strategic boards we sit on such as the Growth Board, Inclusive Growth Group and others.
We’ve made direct invitations to social enterprises who identify as being from a global majority or from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic community for our social investment, festival and awards events.
We’re working with a student from University of Plymouth who is tasked with surveying diversity across the PSEN membership, specifically in the leadership and staff teams. This includes producing a diversity survey, poster and research into diversity in the social enterprise community.
We’re exploring how we use our own supply chain to promote buying from social enterprises from global majority or from Black, Asian or other minority ethnic communities.
As we approach the end of the Barrow Cadbury funded Building Bridges & Pathways project, I would like to express huge thanks to Curtis from Disability Enabling Network; Nadine from Makers Mews; Stu and Anne from NeuDICE; Alan and Mark from Pride in Plymouth; and Chi, Slain and Rachel from WonderZoo. They are the leaders of small scale, big ambition, locally based organisations who stepped up to be our project partners on this learning journey. They have been sharing their lived experiences of being social entrepreneurs from groups who are under-represented in the social investment landscape – people who identify as BAME, Female, LGBTQ+, Physically Disabled and/or Neurodivergent.
At the end of last year, we worked with Chloe Tingle from Lend a Helping Hand to create a Theory of Change. In this session, our partners told us that one of the biggest barriers to applying for finance is that the opportunities, structures and processes have been created by and are aimed at dominant cultures. This can lead to an ‘Us & Them’ culture where it is easy to make assumptions and cast judgements – both ways.
When we asked what needed to change, they said they wanted a better human experience of social investment. They asked for more inclusive spaces, where investors and investees are considered equal partners working towards the common goal of a greener, fairer, better Plymouth for everyone. They asked for safe spaces, where it is ok to have an open, honest and frank conversation about what we have to offer each other and what will enable us to take the next steps towards growing our social impact.
Our Theory of Change is a living document which will guide PSEN to create events and curate experiences which answer this call to action. It maps out what a better human experience of social investment would look like and what PSEN can advocate for to the wider social investment sector. And it has informed the design of our finale event – Plymouth! Are You Ready For Us?! Will be a face to face opportunity to meet the people behind the application portals
There are two final actions in this phase of the Building Bridges & Pathways project and you are invited to engage with us:
1) Our Social Investment Event. Delivered in partnership with SIB, this is the grand finale of our Barrow Cadbury funded series of events.
The morning session is open to all. It will introduce the funders and explain what Social Investment is and why people choose that route to growth. For more information and to book your place, please see our Eventbrite listing.
The afternoon session is by invitation only and is for organisations which are likely to be ready to take on investment in the next 6-12 months. If you think you are ready for this conversation, email amerie@plymsocent.org.uk.
2) We are thrilled to have a University of Plymouth Intern from the School for Society and Culture join us for six weeks.
Ishita is researching how diverse the PSEN membership is, when compared to our local Plymouth population and national social enterprise sector. Her research aligns to PSEN’s core value of working in a collaborative, fair and inclusive way. It will inform the team on how to best to ensure that match our ambitions with our actions.
Please get involved and support the PSEN team on their learning journey by engaging in any requests to take part in a diversity survey or focus group.
And… this is just the beginning!
The past year has shown us that there is so much scope and need for Building Bridges & Pathways across our city and beyond. So watch this space for Phase Two, coming soon!
What do an artisan papermaker, outdoor activities instructor, poet, change agent, workspace designer and social researcher have in common? We all run our own businesses. We are all motivated by social justice. We are all members of NeuDICE CIC. And we are all gloriously neurodivergent.
Neurodiversity is the natural human condition: no two people make sense of the world the same way. Humanity is diverse. But, somehow, some ways of experiencing and making sense of the world became seen as normal and healthy while others are seen as divergent or more usually weird or broken. (If neurodiversity/neurodivergence is a new concept to you, NeuDICE Plymouth can be found at The Plot most days and you can book a half hour slot to learn more – or book our half-day training for your business).
NeuDICE is working for a world that values and relishes human neurodiversity. We have to work for this because the world needs all of our skills and talents, all of our ways of making sense of the world, all of our ways of understanding the social issues of the day that social enterprises exist to address. The world does not just need neurodivergent people. Equally, the world cannot survive with only neurotypical people, the people for whom society and business are currently organised.
In the meantime, while we work towards a wonderful neuroinclusive world, we are creating a community for the business outsiders. Our community is a safe space for those who have believed they are broken because society tells them they are. We are community open to people who are often called weirdos behind their backs and treated as outsiders. [as an aside, when friends of our co-founder Anne have watched the Barbie Movie, they have all laughed when they saw Weird Barbie (who is called that to her face and behind her back) and thought “That’s so Anne”. And Anne is happy with that. Like Weird Barbie, she and we can feel isolated and excluded but can also be the heroes a society needs precisely because we can see and be and do what others cannot]. We are the innovators, the visionaries, the changemakers. We are these simply by existing in public life and within the business world.
And yet, we are outsiders. We can find it hard to get established. It takes longer. We need to find new ways because we cannot access the established ways into the business and social business worlds. As outsiders, we needed the support and allyship of insiders to get started. We’d like to thank PSEN, POP, Nudge and UnLtd for their support and for opening doors for us to grow and thrive in Plymouth.
Here’s to being stronger together in all our glorious human diversity.
Network Coordinator Amerie Rose shares her thoughts, as we transition from the reflections of our anniversary year celebrations, toward planning for Plymouth’s future as a globally leading Social Enterprise City.
I just took a peak at what Ecosia threw back at me when I posed the search question, ‘2033 Future Proof’.
There were some good solid landing places. The UK will have phased out 2G and 3G; AUDI will have halved its factory costs through conserving resources and phasing out production of its combustion models; and the UK government’s Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) will be eagerly anticipating the end of a ten year Investment Zone spend and the maturation of the inaugural Green Gilt.
I then fell down a rabbit hole. I stumbled across an AI generated predictions site which told me of a world where the Internet of Things (IoT) and wearable tech will ‘painlessly and frequently test your unique DNA every time you try to access their services’.
Fortunately, I was pulled back out by Mr Wolf who was quietly and insistently in my aural background reminding me that, ‘…the world is creaking under the strain of this in-ordinarily complicated mass of humanity…’ and that it would be a good time to remember, ‘…what you came here for, what you came to be a part of.’
More than any other time in my working life, in Plymouth I feel a part of something far larger than my own daily world. Through my unique lens, I see a place where the ‘complicated mass of humanity’ is slowly but surely organising itself around a coherent and interconnected vision of a future that people not only want to be a part of but are proactively co-creating. I sit in the centre of my PSEN web and see a network of people, projects and ideas that stretches out further than my own threads could ever be cast.
Who knows where I and we will be in ten years time? Year on year, I find myself amazed and in awe of all that is happening and questioning the influence my one life can have in the face of eight billion other people who have ideas about how it should be. And so, to engage in a way that is meaningful, I tend to my bit by weaving in what I can, tying together detached parts and creating new connections. I find myself dancing between ‘following the breadcrumb trail’ and ‘working on my nets’. Let me explain both these metaphors…
Following the Breadcrumb Trail
Relevance (noun): Its importance or significance in that situation or to that person. (Collins Dictionary)
Since abandoning my known world and moving to West Devon, I have actively embraced what I call ‘The Breadcrumb Trail’. It is a belief that somewhere deep inside, I have got a clue what I am up to. I trust that, if I remain vigilant to what seems relevant, the path will continue to emerge and will continue to lead me to fortune. Sometimes it may feel as though I am lost in the woods, but sometimes that is exactly what is needed to get to where I actually need to go. When Hansel laid his path of bread, his intention was that it would guide he and Gretel home. But the bread fed the forest creatures instead. So all they had left was an invisible path, which – eventually – led them to their fortune.
It turns out that ‘Breadcrumb Navigation’ is also ‘a thing’ out there in tech. It is your compass, your anchor point, and they say we should all be using it to make our digital spaces more accessible. However, I am not sure that those who have adopted this term have ever actually read the original fairytale. Those who have may be concerned what the digital equivalent of a ‘bird’ might be, and whether all ‘Mr Wolfs’ are to be trusted.
What is clear from my foray into 2033 predictions, and my own sense of what is to come, is that to second guess humanity would mean allowing my ego to drive me off a cliff edge into insanity. The Breadcrumb Trail has done me well so far. It brought me to Plymouth, it embedded me in PSEN, and through this I have been nourished with the validation that there is, in fact, a small but relevant part I can play with and contribute to this world.
Working on my nets
Network: noun – a system of things which are connected and which operate together; verb – to meet new people who might be useful to you in your job. (Collins Dictionary)
Like all other networks, Plymouth Social Enterprise Network’s functionality rests in being a network within a network of networks.
The core team who deliver PSEN have two primary purposes: 1) to coordinate the existing network (noun) of Plymouth’s social enterprises. 2) To activate the network through providing opportunities for the network (noun) to network (verb). Through these activities, PSEN create and maintain the pathways which connect our members to each other and to the wider networks which PSEN have access to.
To maintain PSEN’s relevance through to 2033, we need to ensure that every social entrepreneur in Plymouth can see themselves reflected, resourced and represented by PSEN. As we go forwards, the core team will continue to work proactively on relationship development with the people and projects who are operating in Plymouth but who may not currently identify themselves with our core mission. We call this Building Bridges and Pathways.
To forge a new path on unchartered ground takes a lot of resources. When we don’t have that resource to hand, we can only follow the pathways that have already been created by those who have gone before. The PSEN core team tend to those pathways and clear the way for them to interact, thus enabling access to the learning and opportunities that have already been set in stone.
It follows that the more diverse our network of pathways is, the less likely we will get stuck in tried and tested ways and the more likely we will discover pathways anew. The diversity of our network reaches far across peoples, communities, sectors, ambitions and geography. As a network, PSEN are focussed on realising a more socially enterprising economy that helps to create a more equal world with zero poverty, and zero carbon emissions. We cannot do that unless we create a system whereby everyone in Plymouth can #BePartOfTheSolution. We call this Diversity by Design and we will be bringing greater resource to this work-stream over the coming year.
Where do we go from here?
When PSEN’s primary purpose is enabled, we look forward to innovating further into a third space: 3) Casting our net.
In 2024, the core PSEN team will be delivering activities which will open up new social investment opportunities and taking steps to ensure that we have a Future Workforce who are ready to take on the challenges and opportunities of the next ten years and beyond. We will be curating partnerships between our members so that they are #StrongerTogether and reaching out to communities and businesses who are looking to become part of our movement. We will be further placing Plymouth on the world map as a city to be learned from by bringing in national and international visitors for knowledge exchange and partnership development.
Over the past ten years, Plymouth has proven itself as a place where we are #DoingBusinessDifferently and making a real, positive difference to people and planet. Over the next ten years, let’s continue to coordinate and activate our network of networks and ensure that our pebbles on the path are noticed far and wide by all those who are both lost and found in the woods.
Guest writer Anne Collins – co-Founder and Director of NeuDICE – takes a reflective and critical look at inclusivity at business events.
Business world, we have a problem
Business as usual isn’t working. Let me rephrase that. Business as usual is working extremely well for a narrow sector of the diversity of people who are or could be founding, working in and being directors of social enterprises. For others, it is challenging to try to fit in and accommodate themselves to an alien way of thinking and doing.
The statement that business as usual isn’t working applies to the whole breadth and depth of activities and ways of thinking in the business world. It matters because we live in an era of change. We live in a time where society needs the combined understanding and involvement of the broadest diversity of thinkers and doers in order to survive. This has not always been the case. In times when we know ‘A’ and ‘B’ and there is a clear path between them, we do not need diversity. Society can afford to exclude anyone who doesn’t fit the stereotypical business mould. We do not live in such times. Society and the business world cannot afford to continue with business as usual. We need to work together to find ways to reimagine doing business and being business people.
PSEN is already at the forefront of this. NeuDICE CIC is delighted to have been invited to work with them to advise and co-create solutions for one particular group who are often ideally suited to social enterprise. These are the neurodivergent thinkers, doers, lovers of social justice, visionaries and collaborators. We are not broken or defective but business as usual can break us; we are part of the diversity of humanity for which the business world is not designed.
Let’s think about networking, workshops, strategic meetings and public forums. We use them in the business world to gain visibility, contacts and credibility. In the world of social enterprise, we also use them to co-create ways forward for a stronger society. If we need a diversity of thinkers and doers in business and social enterprise, we need a diversity of people able to come as their whole selves to these events and participate on a level playing field.
If you want to include us in these activities, here are a few things to start you thinking.
Intersectionality
We are not all the same. We certainly aren’t all white male graduates. A recent NeuDICE Living Lab session heard from an Asian Muslim woman who is a carer for disabled children. Her barriers were not the same as Anne’s – a white woman with a PhD and no dependents. At the NeuDICE launch, we didn’t think to provide the slide deck with descriptions and transcription in advance despite knowing someone with a visual impairment was coming.
Sensory environment
Acoustics, lighting, smells, textures, even air pressure can all impact our ability to focus or even remain in a space. Great hybrid meetings give us a chance to participate while controlling our sensory environment. Lockdown was a revelation for many of us as we found we could do a meeting a day rather than one meeting leading to two days of inability to work due to overload.
Thinking out loud
We need ways to capture ideas as we have them. We need space to think things through out loud. For in-person meetings, a paper tablecloth can take the place of the chat box for capturing ideas as they arise. Creating structured spaces for reflection and pairs or small group slows things down and deepens the conversations.
We can take longer to process information. If you want us for our contributions not just our presence, make sure we have that time. The easiest way is to tell us in advance of any questions or activities so we can do the thinking before we arrive in our own way.
Communication
Give opportunities for spoken, written and drawn contributions.
We may find it hard to know when it is our turn to speak, so create a structured approach and enforce it. One bit of business as usual that actually works is only contributing via the Chair and having a Chair who does a go-round allowing sufficient pause for each person to contribute rather than flicking their eyes round after asking if anyone else has anything to add.
You may need to turn standard written information into a set of colour-coded stickie notes, a mind map, a multimedia virtual white board (eg Miro) or bullet point lists to make it easier for them to process information.
I always check what style of email works better, if they want key facts in bold and whether I should put information in the body of an email or as an attachment.
NeuDICE CIC chose Plymouth for its UK launch on 17th April 2023. Our mission is to open the business world to neurodivergent entrepreneurs. We provide consultancy, training, coaching and research services along with growing a UK-wide community and peer to peer support for entrepreneurs themselves.
We want to see a more socially enterprising economy that helps to create a more equal world with zero poverty, and zero carbon emissions. To help Plymouth become the greenest, fairest, most inclusive city in the UK we need social enterprises to be at the heart. So at the Plymouth Growth Board last week we gave an update on progress towards this more inclusive economy in the city.
The purpose of the Inclusive Growth work is: ‘to grow a prosperous economy that reduces inequality, is sustainable and truly serves the wellbeing of local people’. The principle is that people in work should not be on benefits or going to food banks in one of the richest countries in the world and that economic prosperity needs to benefit all and specifically reduce the wage gap between the richest and poorest. It feels to us that the glass is half full. There is some good news – over the last few years the wage gap between the richest 20% and the lowest earners has reduced. However, people in Plymouth still earn 89% of the UK average. Also, women are still paid less than men. There are more jobs and businesses in the city, but we still rank poorly for business start up and have high levels of ‘economic inactivity’.
We highlighted some of the positive work that has happened recently like nearly 300 sign-ups to the Plymouth Charter (many of them our members); national and international interest in our work; some award winning examples of inclusive and sustainable practice and the fact the inclusive growth is mentioned in the top line of many economic and investment proposals.
However, we still need more action and practical implementation below this in specific sector plans and projects and activities such as the Freeport, UK Shared Prosperity Fund proposals, Port Strategy and other work. We feel this is a hugely important agenda and one where we’ll keep making the case for social enterprise as an integral way to create a greener, fairer city.
Buyers Network
PSEN attended the Plymouth Buyers Network last week. This group of organizations includes Plymouth City Council, Chamber of Commerce, Federation of Small Business, Babcock, University of Plymouth and others who collectively spend hundreds of millions to deliver their work. We are trying to keep as much of that in Plymouth, where possible, to maximise the wider benefits of this spending to the city’s economy, society and environment.
At the last meeting we looked at developing the suppliers directory to help everyone find and buy from Plymouth businesses. We also explored how each organization looks at procurement. We need more organizations embedding social value in their supply chains. PSEN is asking for social value to be more strategically adopted across the wider public and private sector.
You are on your way!
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