Plymouth recognised as first ’Social Enterprise City’ in UK

The accolade, granted by Social Enterprise UK - the national body for Social Enterprise - recognises the extent and quality of social enterprise business activity in the city. Bristol has also been awarded the status. Plymouth’s Social Enterprise City status will raise the profile of the sector, within the city and beyond, and could also help to attract extra investment so social enterprises in Plymouth can make a bigger contribution to the local economy. There are an estimated 150 such firms in Plymouth that collectively employ around 6,000-7,000 people and bring in half a billion pounds of income to the city. Gareth Hart, one of Plymouth University's entrepreneurs in residence and Chair of Plymouth Social Enterprise Network (PSEN), which led the bid for the award, said: “This is fantastic news for Plymouth which proves we are one of the nation's social enterprise capital cities. This award is recognition for the hard of work of the scores of social enterprises in the city and those who support them. We have a diverse range of social enterprises in the city including massive businesses like the University and Plymouth Community Healthcare but we also host large numbers of smaller but no less valued companies.