What’s your business?
We’re a workers co-operative making DVDs for social enterprises and charities. We also make social-issue films for TV and run participatory video projects and media training.

What brought you into social enterprise?
After 14 years as a freelance TV director I got fed up with the TV shark pool. I wanted to combine my voluntary and campaigning life with my professional skills.

Why are you a social entrepreneur?
I like a democratic workplace, and as a co-operative we’re never under the thumb of outside shareholders.

Why would you recommend social enterprise as a business model?
Right now, with so many ‘anti-social’ enterprises collapsing, the gloss has rubbed off the capitalist model. Economic life and business are an integral part of human life – why not behave in a decent and humane way while we’re doing business?

What gets you up in the morning?
I love what I do. I’ve got great colleagues. The projects we get involved in are massively motivating.

What’s the most exciting thing that’s happened?
A couple of highlights: mediaco-op’s first film being used by Scottish Women’s Aid as part of a successful funding push – they got £6m. Spending four weeks with 3,000 Angolan soldiers to film their HIV/AIDS education.

What advice would you give to anyone else thinking about getting involved in social enterprise?
Go for it! Network with other social enterprises. There’s a big pool of support, talent and experience, and you’ll be surprised how willing people are to share their knowledge.

Click here for a 60-second clip of media co-op's DVD about the Edinburgh Cyrenians.

www.mediaco-op.net

What’s your business?
We provide facilities to encourage people of all ages and abilities to take part in sport, leisure and recreation. Wages are low In Banff and Macduff and affordable facilities keep communities healthy, happy and engaged.

What brought you into social enterprise?
Sheer accident. I was the skipper of a trawler. Volunteering with the football club enticed me in. I eventually became the manager of the trust.

Why are you a social entrepreneur?
The whole team is. We’ve built it up from almost scratch and there is great strength and personal satisfaction from having done so.

Why would you recommend social enterprise as a business model?
It gives the freedom to try things out. Aberdeenshire is seen as wealthy, but there are areas which aren’t. By generating our own income, we can improve quality of life and help people make constructive use of leisure time.

What gets you up in the morning?
The variety and the challenge. I can be cleaning the toilets and then sitting in a meeting with top officials. If it’s not been a great day and I see a trawler rocking about on the horizon, I think ‘that could be me’ and feel very grateful.

What’s the most exciting thing that’s happened?
Our football club being quality marked by the Scottish Football Association and getting an enhanced club cap from Aberdeenshire Council. It’s been a hallmark of good practice for funders.

What advice would you give to anyone else thinking about getting involved in social enterprise?
Go with your dream – it’s worth it for you and for your community. And get advice early on from the SSEC!

With over 20 years' experience behind it, BRAG Enterprises is pioneering a unique approach to social enterprise, taking people who are furthest from the labour market into employment. This includes supporting new business start ups which in turn, offer work to BRAG trainees. A unique development, is BRAGs School for Social Entrepreneurs which encourages people to start new initiatives. Operating this franchise in Fife for six years now, BRAG is taking the approach to the West of Scotland with a view to going Scotland-wide. Manager, John Oates, describes a typical day.

“If I’m not out and about taking the BRAG message elsewhere in Scotland, I tend to arrive at the office at 9am to a great tranche of emails. My office moves, sometimes into the broom cupboard, because we let out space and it’s at a premium!

The rest of the day is spent developing the business in one way or another. Our commercial activity hinges on letting 60 properties in order to fund our community-based training. There’s only 13 staff and with a turnover of over £1million, there is always a great deal to do. For example, today I met with Jobcentre Plus about developing social enterprise through football clubs; Sun Microsystems about taking learning across Scotland; and SABRE, our commercial training arm.

“The papers I’m working on include how to cut fuel overheads on our many buildings; preparing budgets for work in Clackmannanshire on social enterprise support; and material for the European Curriculum for Social Enterprise in which we are partners.

“Last year we won a Learndirect Learning Centre Award which lit the blue touch paper for our training. All the staff here deliver specialised training. I’m an electrical engineer to trade so I train people to test electrical appliances. It keeps me hands on and in touch with trainees.

“I tend to feel pretty good by the end of a day. I firmly believe in what we are trying to do. I used to work in BP and the difference here is that you can flick a switch and see it happen. Social enterprise provides a way forward. We are just beginning to see the dawn of something quite big. For us, it’s BRAG Scotland Ltd.”

With a third of Dundee’s population living in areas of social deprivation, Dundee City Council’s vision includes a commitment to increase the city’s social economy. Leading the way is Pervin Ahmad of the long-established Dundee International Women’s Centre, who, in the centre’s first year of commercial trading, has increased turnover by 2 ½ times the previous year's figure. Through its new catering and childcare services, the centre is providing much-needed jobs and training for some of the most excluded women in the city while raising revenue for the centre’s work. I asked her about a typical day.

“I get to work by about 8.45am and the first thing I do is switch my PC on, and check the answering machine before going straight into the kitchen to chat with our caterer. As she is a social butterfly, it concerns me that she might feel isolated in the kitchen so I want to make sure she feels valued and supported. I then go to the crèche to do the same, which can take slightly longer as there are usually 3 staff in the crèche.

“After that, every day is different. Usually there is a list of things to do and then other things happen. Take yesterday for example. We’ve won a Dundee Partnership award in the Work and Enterprise category. So, a camera crew came to shoot a DVD. Previously I had purchased new uniforms for the caterer but the trousers were too long so I took them home the night before to alter them and had to make sure they fitted. I then went to make sure the community area looked presentable, I arranged flowers on the tables. We hire this room out for functions so it needs to look its best. I spent from then until 1.30 running between the camera crew, the crèche and the community area, reassuring service users and staff who were taking part. At 1.30 I went to a meeting with a local Advice and Information Centre to talk about partnership work and improving referral systems. It’s important for service users that we have good relationships with local agencies. At 2.45 it was back to the office to review papers for a finance group meeting that evening. I aim to finish about 5. My colleagues say it’s more like 5.30 and there’s often work in the evenings – whether meetings or preparing for the next day.

“I love the variety. I see the difference we are making for women and I want to develop our social enterprise so we are less reliant on funding and more stable as an organisation.”