Links

Supported by

	Birmingham ChangeUp Consortium Website for the Birmingham ChangeUP Consortium, with membership details, small grants, information about ChangeUp and more. Click here for the latest newsletter
	Business Link West Midlands The new single access point for support for businesses - including social enterprises - in the West Midlands from Business Link West Midlands. Tel: 0845 113 1234 Open: 8am - 6pm weekdays, 9.30am - 1pm on Saturdays
	ChangeUp This is the link to the national ChangeUp portal. ChangeUp is about strengthening the support and assistance available to voluntary and community organisations.
	Co-operatives UK As the apex organisation for co-operative enterprise in the UK, they promote co-operative and mutual solutions, and work in partnership with members to build a strong and succesful co-operative movement.
	The Fair Finance Consortium The Fair Finance Consortium is here to help if you've had difficulty accessing business loans from traditional sources, members are located throughout the region.
	The Finance Hub The Finance Hub has links to a range of tools and resources to help you ensure that your costings and accounting techniques include 'full cost recovery'.
	REALiSE REALiSE is a support programme to improve the capacity and capability of social enterprises to enable them deliver better front line services. Micro-clusters of social enterprises have been created in five key areas: • Employment & Training • Health & Social Care • Environment & Sustainability • Business support • Education, Culture & Sport
	Social Enterprise Coalition (SEC) SEC is the UK's national body for social enterprise. The voice for the sector, we support and represent the work of our members, influence national policy and promote best practice.
	Social Enterprise West Midlands A regional network that aims to support and promote a strong, visible, growing and sustainable social enterprise sector across the West Midlands.
	The Solihull Sustain Consortium A group of organisations working together to support Solihull's voluntary and community sector in its work.
	West Midlands European Network A non-profit making organisation that provides guidance and assistance to voluntary organisations, community groups and social enterprises who wish to access the European Structural Funds.

Publications

A BUSINESS PLANNING GUIDE TO DEVELOPING A SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
A nicely produced 'how to do it' development guide aimed particularly at voluntary and community organisations that are considering developing social enterprise activities. Published by Fourth Sector.
Free PDF download

MEASURING REAL VALUE: A DIY GUIDE TO SOCIAL RETURN ON INVESTMENT
Value-driven organisations need new ways to understand, measure and foster awareness of the impact they have and the social and financial value of this impact -- their "return on investment". New Economics Foundation, the independent think-tank for alternative economics has published MEASURING REAL VALUE: a DIY guide to Social Return on Investment.
Free PDF download

PARTNERSHIP IN PUBLIC SERVICES: AN ACTION PLAN FOR THIRD SECTOR INVOLVEMENT
Cabinet Office/Office of the Third Sector
Free PDF download

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE ACTION PLAN: SCALING NEW HEIGHTS
Cabinet Office/Office of the Third Sector
Free PDF download

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE COALITION
The Social Enterprise Coalition publishes a large number of reports and other documents on social enterprise and related subjects, and many of them are freely available as PDF files from SEC's website

These include:

HEALTHY BUSINESS: A GUIDE TO SOCIAL ENTERPRISE IN HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE IN PRIMARY AND COMMUNITY CARE
by Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Health

KEEPING IT LEGAL
by Bates, Wells and Braithwaite. Takes you through the main issues you need to consider when setting the rules and regulations that govern your business.

MORE FOR YOUR MONEY, A GUIDE TO PROCURING FROM SOCIAL ENTERPRISES FOR LOCAL AUTHORITIES
Also free hard copies while stocks last. Contact SEC officemanager@socialenterprise.org.uk

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE EAST MIDLANDS - 'BEST PROCUREMENT' PROJECT
Social Enterprise East Midlands (SEEM) has produced a wealth of user resources as part of its BEST Procurement project (Benefiting the Economy and Society through Procurement).

Follow the link to 'Guides for Selling to the Public Sector' for guides on
replication and franchising, selling yourself effectively, contract-readiness, and specific issues faced by BME organisations.

Follow the link to 'Tools and Resources for BEST Procurement' for free
publications, including Social Enterprise and the Public Sector: a Practical
Guide to Law and Policy, produced by Anthony Collins Solicitors for SEEM.

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE FUTURES
By Westall and Chalkley. Published by The Smith Institute.
Collection of short articles on social enterprise. Contributors include Liam Black, a Director of Jamie Oliver's Fifteen Foundation, Nigel Kershaw, chief executive of BIGInvest, and Alastair Wilson, chief executive of the School for Social Entrepreneurs.
Free PDF download

THE FUTURE ROLE OF THE THIRD SECTOR IN SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC REGENERATION:INTERIM REPORT
December 2006, HM Treasury/Cabinet Office
Free PDF download

Podcasts

Podnosh’s Grassroots Channel tells powerful stories of people who got off their backsides and started to change the world around them. It was set it up with support from Birmingham Community Empowerment Network.

Roger Telphia, chief executive of Inner City 100 winner and one of the fastest growing inner city social enterprises, Future Health & Social Care, talks about his ambition to build a £100m a year business. Click here to go to the podcast

A new farmers market in Kings Norton is operating as a social enterprise and has registered using the new Community Interest Company legislation.
Click here to go to the podcast

Birmingham City Council - Third Sector Commissioning

Birmingham City Council periodically issues prospectuses detailing the services and service outcomes it wishes to commission from third sector organisations. Three past prospectuses are available below for information (please note that these prospectuses are now closed).

Voluntary sector advice services (228KB)

Housing services (417KB)
Including young persons' home options service, domestic violence, street intervention service, housing advice (single people at risk, day centre facilities, and housing advice for vulnerable groups.

Planning and regeneration services (3.9MB)
Including engagement and support of homeless people, refugee support, supporting the transition of people with mental ill-health from social care to economic activity, and employment development within the Early Intervention Team attached to Heart of Birmingham PCT.

A new prospectus for Adults & Communities services will be issued in the autumn of 2007. If you wish to be sent a copy when it becomes available, please register your interest with Ted Timothy, the Adults & Communities Third Sector Partnerships team: ted.timothy@birmingham.gov.uk