The community interest company is five years old and succeeding despite tough economic times. Gemma Hampson reports on the challenges of the past and what the future holds ...more

Many village pubs are struggling to survive in the face of the economic downturn and declining populations. But now rural communities are halting the slide by taking control of their watering holes – and it’s a model that echoes the government’s call for a Big Society ...more

A London beekeeping social enterprise has benefited from a new mentoring programme that teamed them up with a big business high-flyer. But the corporates are now getting interested in forging commercial links with the sector as well as dispensing advice, says Caspar van Vark ...more

As cuts in public spending loom, councils of all political persuasions are looking to social enterprises to plug gaps in their services. Nicola Carroll looks at how this controversial policy works in practice ...more