Let's export our expertise, says head of School for Social Entrepreneurs

The UK's social enterprise knowledge is a potentially highly profitable export, says the head of the School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE).

‘We need enterprising ways of rebuilding our economy and the social enterprise sector here is world-beating,' said CEO Alistair Wilson. ‘We have 30 to 40 international delegations coming to visit a year just at our east London office.'

People in the UK sector are often taking in overseas guests on learning visits, he said. Other countries want to learn from us and we could earn money from our knowledge and keep ploughing that back into the sector,' he added.

SSE opened its first overseas branch in Sydney, Australia in April 2009 and is planning to open another in Melbourne later this year. This is in addition to its existing nine schools in the UK and a further three in planning.

The organisation received $3m (Australian dollars) to franchise the school in Auburn, western Sydney and Melbourne. The Australian government's innovation fund put in $1.2m and a substantial amount was given by the Vincent Fairfax Foundation. A range of other funders also contributed smaller amounts.
The CEO said several trips to the US and Australia have brought home how advanced the social enterprise sector is in the UK.

‘People moan about the Office of the Third Sector but the UK is far more sophisticated in terms of policy for social enterprise', said Wilson. ‘I did a lot of work thinking through the social enterprise agenda with the Social Inclusion Unit in Canberra and UK public policy is a frequently referenced source of information. We can educate others and we can generate funds through our intellectual property,' he added.

Wilson said he has spoken to Richard Parry, head of education and skills for the UK's trade and investment unit, as well as outgoing third sector minister Kevin Brennan, who was supportive, and is now calling on the government to research the potential of exporting the UK's social enterprise knowledge.

‘We don't want to dominate other countries with our ideas, or even to own the SSEs around the UK and the world. But we have eleven years of experience that we can use to franchise models overseas. We have a comprehensive suite or products and services that can be used in a number of other countries and so do other organisations and enterprises,' said Wilson.

Story updated: 12/06/2009