Plymouth Social Enterprise City Festival 2022 – Shake it Up; Interesting Times was a fantastic success.
Our 13th edition of the festival featured over 20 events attended by around 500 people. The activities included a launch at the Athenaeum; a women’s networking event; and a fun social, social enterprise quiz night. The State of Us conference explored economic democracy and community power. There were focus groups on PSEN’s own approach to diversity, values and the environment; a plastics shedding bonanza; Millfields Trust’s AGM; and Plymouth Energy Community’s inspiring change gathering. We saw repairing, making and mending with The Scrapstore; listened to Hospital Radio; and brought and shared at Jarsquad’s events. Climate Clarity ran an environmental business taster and Iridescent Ideas delivered a business advice seminar. And finally, to wrap it all up, WonderZoo curated a wonderfully diverse arts, poetry, music and business event at The Plot.
We met our aims of supporting and enabling social purpose businesses to open their doors, share their knowledge, make new connections, and strengthen the sector together. We highlighted the incredible social enterprise economy right here in Plymouth while listening to your concerns during these ‘Interesting Times’ and together identified a spectrum of approaches to ‘Shaking it Up’ for people and planet.
We want to say an enormous THANK YOU to all our sponsors, supporters, and the planning group for making this happen. We could not have done this without all of them. Go Southwest and The Plymouth Charter were our Headline and Gold level sponsors, plus our Silver and Bronze sponsors Plymouth Energy Community, Real Ideas, Iridescent Ideas CIC and Social Enterprise Mark all helped provide the resources needed to run the festival.
View our festival photo gallery.
2pm – 4pm
Social Impact Workshop
Gareth will help you to make the most of your social impact data by exploring different impact methodologies and how you can turn your data into great campaigning and marketing materials.
Online event
Event by POP and POP Ideas
9.30 – 11.30am
Celebrating women in business: FREE networking event with Laura Horton
Following the success of the previous women’s networking events run by leading Plymouth social enterprises Millfields Trust and Social Enterprise Mark CIC , we are delighted to announce we will be running the event again on 16th November, as part of the Plymouth Social Enterprise City Festival. Come along to connect with fellow businesswomen and hear from inspirational female speakers.
Our guest speaker Laura Horton is a writer and freelance publicist. Laura will give a short talk, followed by Q&A and plenty of time for informal networking over coffee/tea and cake.
In person event
Event by Millfields Trust and Social Enterprise Mark CIC
11.00am-3pm
Precious Plastics Plymouth – Shredding Bonanza
Did you know that globally only 10% of all plastics produced are currently being recycled? We want to change this, one bottle top at a time.
You can bring your milk bottle tops and we will show you how to wash and dry them so we can use them to make other products. We will then sort these and shred them using our paddle shredder and every participant will come away with a soapdish, injection molded from the plastics we process on the day.
In person workshop
Event by Precious Plastics
12.30pm – 2.30pm
Interesting Times
FREE Festival Opening Event & Networking meet.
Join PSEN for the official launch event, in the main auditorium at the fantastic Plymouth Athenaeum.
Come and have lunch with us, and get an extra helping of thought provoking brain food!
We will hear from entrepreneurs about what it’s really like on the ground right now, as well as the wider political narrative that is creating the “Interesting times” we’re watching unfold before our eyes. We know there’s been a lot of talk about change recently, but we want to know – when we’re done talking, what’s actually changed?
We’ll also tell you more about the week long festival line up and how we’ll be helping to highlight the incredible social enterprise economy right here in Plymouth, and to create opportunities for skill sharing, inspiring, learning, socialising, connecting and profile raising.
You can also hear from our lead sponsors about what they’re doing.
In person event
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
3pm – 4.30pm
Building Bridges & Pathways – Focus Group Conversation
Come and join us for a focus group conversation digging down into the foundations of what holds us together as a network. We will be asking:
What values are important to you and your organisation, which you can bring to the PSEN network?
Who are we as PSEN? Who aren’t we as PSEN?
How might a group agreement add value to our network?
What is important to uphold when we come together as PSEN members?
This is the start of creating a guiding document which members agree to when signing up for PSEN membership. Can we find some common ground which brings our shared values to the fore and supports the growth of an inclusive and empowering culture for our network to operate within?
In person event – 20 spaces
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
6.30pm-8.30pm
Millfields Trust AGM 2022
On Wednesday 16th November, during the Social Enterprise Week, Millfields Trust will hold its 2022 AGM at HQ Business Centre from 6:30pm in the Taylor Suite. In collaboration with the British Art show which is being hosted in Plymouth, we are delighted to announce this years’ guest speakers are Donna Howard, Executive Director of Karst and Victoria Pomery, Chief Executive Officer of The Box.
We look forward to welcoming all to this open event.
Further information on the British Art Show can be found here.
In person event
Event by Millfields Trust
7pm-9pm
Quiz Night
It’s back! By popular demand, the Quiz Night is making a welcome return to the line-up for this year’s Social Enterprise City Festival!
All funds raised will go towards helping Moments Cafe & Memory Matters Hub to continue their amazing work supporting people living with dementia in the community and their families. So any extra donations will be very gratefully received.
In person event
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network and Iridescent Ideas CIC
12pm-4pm both days
Repair, Make and Mend with Plymouth Scrapstore
Join us for part of our series of Popup sessions, enjoy some playful creativity, come in and hear about what we do at Plymouth Scrapstore and take a look at some of the amazing range of resources we stock at our shop on Union Street.
Drop in workshops
Event by Plymouth Scrapstore
All-Day
Social Enterprise Day
We’ll be touring the city visiting social enterprises throughout the day for short livestreams on our social media channels.
Let us know if you’d like a visit so we can add you to the schedule. Email Us!
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
All-Day
Meet Hospital Radio
Come and meet the Plymouth Hospital Radio team at their all-day stand in Derriford Hospital.
They have a new frequency to listen on and are holding this information stand to help spread the word.
Find out about the range of shows on Hospital Radio, the volunteers behind the scenes and how you could get involved.
Information stand
Event by Hospital Radio Plymouth
All-Day
The State of Us: 2
This exciting headline event is for anyone working on social, environmental, racial, and economic justice, democracy and community power at a local level across the UK, whether through local enterprise, organising, activism, third sector, or local government. Join us to talk, learn and make connections for a brighter, more viable and more just future.
Taking place at the Market Hall, Devonport, Plymouth on Friday 18th November, SoU2 is a full day conference of talks and workshops, followed by a social event. Both events are free to attend and can be booked together or independently.
All day conference
Event by Real Ideas
9am – 12pm
Saturday Starts HERE – Ideas Clinic for social and environmental change
Have you got a new idea and don’t know what to do with it? We can help!
‘Saturday Starts HERE’ is an Ideas Clinic for anyone who has a great solution to one of Plymouth’s social or environmental problems but doesn’t know where to start.
If you would appreciate a sounding board and some input to set you on your way, come along to Moments Café for a chat, a cuppa and a piece of cake.
In person event
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
Various Times
Social Enterprise City – Interactive Exhibition
As part of our new Network Coordinator’s challenge to make direct contact with ALL PSEN members over festival week, Amerie invites you to an interactive consultation and creative collaboration taking place at a convenient city centre location.
Over the festival week, we will co-create a 3D representation of Social Enterprise activity across the city by getting creative with data on members’ social, environmental and economic impact. And we will be asking for your ideas on how PSEN can support you to get more out of your network.
This is a drop in event, kindly hosted at Moments Cafe – book an arrival time just so we know when to expect you, and come for as long as you can.
You can also get involved with our Ideas Clinic and Focus Groups held at Moments during festival week.
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
2pm – 4pm
Culture Club – Can Opener Cuisine & JARWASH
FREE Bring & Share Culture Club Event. Bring a fav dish made from jars and tins AND jars with labels you’d like to scrub off!
Some of our favourite foods from around the world arrive on our plates held in tins and jars. What fabulous dishes do you make with tinned food OR keep in jars?
We’ll also chat about how we rethink the value of materials, and plant some ideas for growing a JarSquad in Stoke.
In Person Event
Event by The Village Hub
9am-12.30pm
The Climate Fresk: Business Taster Plymouth
Climate Clarity invites PSEN members, and all local social interest businesses, to join a taster workshop to experience the Climate Fresk first-hand and see if it’s right for your team.
Come along and meet other professionals interested in sustainability and the green transition.
A full Climate Fresk workshop for you to sample. In the space of 3 hours, we will:Play a card game in groups to learn about the systems of climate change;
Debrief on how the information affects us; and
Brainstorm creative ways to engage with the issue within your industry.
This event is for you if you think the Fresk could be useful to run in your workplace, but you’re just not sure (yet).
In person workshop
Event by Climate Clarity CIC and Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
11.30am – 1.30pm
Diversity by Design – Focus Group Conversation
When you look across your team, how are you doing when it comes to representing differences across age, disability, gender, relationship / family status, race, ethnicity, religion / belief, sex, sexual orientation, and socio-economic background?
Do you have wisdom to share through your experiences of inclusion and exclusion?
Do you want to improve the diversity of your team, but are not sure how to do about it?
Join us for a conversation on a topic which raises both challenges and opportunities and therefore is necessary to address.
In person event – 20 spaces
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
3.45pm – 5pm
JarSquad Public Assembly #18
Join JARSQUAD for their regular meet, finding joy and connection while making jams and preserves together.
JARSQUAD brings people together through communal food-preservation, to practice sharing ingredients, recipes, and know-how by making jams and preserves as a ‘squad’.
At the Assemblies, they work together to put up communally harvested local abundance into tasty jars
JarSquad runs as a solidarity economy and we offer sliding scale fees and free tickets as it is important to us that our events are financially accessible for everyone.
In Person Event
Event by JARSQUAD
6pm – 8pm
Ask Me Anything (about social enterprise) – online Q&A event
Join us for this online Q&A event where PSEN & Iridescent Ideas CIC Director, Gareth Hart, will be available to answer any questions you have on the subject of social enterprise.
While he can’t GUARANTEE to know all the answers himself, he can certainly give you the benefit of his experience and signpost you to the best people to help you.
Online Event
Event by Iridescent Ideas CIC and Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
9.30am – 11.30am
Working at the Edge – Focus Group Conversation
Plymouth is built on diversity, and PSEN reflects this through both the network of PSEN businesses and the communities of beneficiaries they serve. In a time when opportunities abound and resources are stretched, being clearer about what differentiates us can help us to see how we all fit together.
Come and join us for a focus group conversation which will illuminate the strengths of the PSEN puzzle.
In person event – 20 spaces
Event by Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
5pm-7pm
Plymouth Energy Community: Inspiring Change Together
Members and partner organisations are invited to join PEC for an informal gathering, as part of Plymouth’s Social Enterprise Festival.
It has been an extraordinary year, our community-centred approach to energy solutions has never been more necessary or relevant. Demand for our services is constantly growing and we have an important role in our city’s journey through this current crisis, and onwards to net zero. We can’t do this without you, our members and partner organisations – so we would like to bring everyone together at an informal gathering
Please join us for a drink and some light nibbles, put faces to names and let’s continue the conversation to inspire change.
In person event
Event by Plymouth Energy Community
6.45pm onward
SHAKE IT UP!
Social Enterprise Social
Everyone is welcome as we celebrate the end of festival week, reflect on what we’ve learned and energise our community into shaking up business for the benefit of people and planet.
Small businesses and organisations in the city play a vital role in social change by being firmly rooted in their surrounding communities. To create a catalyst for change, help with the cost of living crisis and support the climate emergency, work needs to be done at the community level.
These talks and opportunities for conversation, curated thanks to the amazing WonderZoo collective, are our way to create understanding of how social change can happen through social enterprise and collaboration. The information shared by our guests or will provide an opportunity for learning and give us insights into how the wider community can improve their practices for outreach and community building.
We can’t wait to see you there!
Event by Wonderzoo and Plymouth Social Enterprise Network
If you’re interested in find out more about sponsoring events with us then email festival@plymsocent.org.uk
With thanks to our sponsors who make the festival possible –
HEADLINE SPONSOR:
