Back again and better than ever, Social Saturday will be held this year on 10 October. It is a great way to show your community and the wider world the contribution your charity or social enterprise makes. Last year, those organisations that took part reported record sales and many gained some amazing press coverage. There'll be more to follow so put the date in your diaries.
The Guild of Public Relations Practitioners and the Public Relations Consultants Association recently hosted a meet-the-buyer event at Macmillan Publishers in King's Cross, London, that brought together social enterprises in the creative sector with corporate buyers and the PR and media industry. Deals were done and new relationships forged. SEUK will be holding more events in the coming months, so watch this space.
This year's UK Social Enterprise Awards, which will take place in London on 26 November, are now open for entries. Organisations have until 10 July to submit applications. Info at www.socialenterprise.org.uk/about/social-enterprise-awards.
It was great to see UK Trade & Investment recognise social enterprises as part of its Britain Is Great campaign. Speakers from the ethical bottled water firm Belu, the Social Stock Exchange and SEUK travelled to the British Pavilion at the World Expo in Milan, Italy, on 17 June to establish international opportunities for social enterprises and social investors. The Social Enterprise World Forum is also in Milan between 1 and 3 July – come and join us.
Peter Holbrook is chief executive of Social Enterprise UK