Networks
Manchester Social Economy Alliance
Our Policy & Influence team convenes the Manchester Social Economy Alliance (MSEA) – a growing network of organisations and changemakers who are part of Manchester’s vibrant social economy.
The social economy includes businesses and enterprises that reinvest their profits to achieve positive social or environmental goals. This includes community interest companies (CICs), cooperatives, charities, social enterprises, and individual social entrepreneurs. These organisations work to strengthen communities, create inclusive employment, build local wealth, and deliver sustainable services and products that benefit our communities and our environment.
We act as a lead facilitator of the MSEA and is proud to work in partnership with Flourish Together CIC to bring the Alliance together. Now entering our second year, we are building momentum and continuing to provide both strategic and grassroots-level support to strengthen the social economy across Manchester.
The MSEA is here to:
- Host events that grow and support the sector, including free training, peer support, and one-to-one mentoring opportunities.
- Influence local policy and procurement to ensure Manchester’s social economy has a voice in decision-making and benefits from public sector procurement opportunities.
- Foster collaboration between organisations to share knowledge, resources, and opportunities.
- If you're part of Manchester’s social economy and want to connect with others, get support, or find ways to collaborate – we invite you to join the MSEA.
Find out more here or email: josie@macc.org.uk
E26 / Free Support for Social Businesses in Manchester
We are proud to be part of a new Greater Manchester-wide programme funded by 10GM, designed to boost the support available to social economy organisations and community businesses in Manchester. We’re expanding our support offer to meet the specific needs of social economy organisations — helping them to start up, grow, operate sustainably, and increase their impact. This programme connects organisations with expert advice, practical support, and new opportunities to develop their capacity and reach wider markets.
Manchester Social Entrepreneurs meetups – The meetups focus on adding value by bringing like-minded people together to discuss their projects, ideas and opinions and help them make a change, find a passion, or enable their willingness to help.
Resources
Start your social enterprise guide by Social Enterprise UK – this guide takes you through the essentials, and focusses on the parts that are most important in a social enterprise
Setting up a social enterprise – guides from Gov.uk on setting up a social enterprise
Setting up a Community Interest Company (CIC) Social Enterprise registration guide – A how to guide for setting up a Community Interest Company (CIC) social enterprise, registration and company formation. It provides you with step-by-step advice and links to everything you will need. For further guidance on setting up a Community Interest Company (CIC), visit our Starting a group page
Charity Commission guidance on converting a Community Interest Company to a CIO – If you are a Community Interest Company (CIC) you can apply to convert directly to a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO)
Business and IP Centre Manchester – The British Library Business and IP Centre National Network provides entrepreneurs and SMEs across the UK with free access to databases, market research, journals, directories and reports worth thousands of pounds.
Guide to registering a Community Interest Company (CIC) – There are different processes, which we deal with here in turn, for: registering a new CIC; converting an existing (non-charitable) company to a CIC
Factsheet 7: Community Interest Companies: Directors’ Legal Responsibilities – Community Interest Companies, although they have their own regulator, are in all other respects companies governed by the Companies Acts. The Board of Directors is the company’s highest authority. However, the company directors do not wield unlimited power.
Factsheet 11: Social enterprise – Social enterprises are businesses which have a clear social and/or environmental mission, which generates the majority of their income through trade and reinvest the most of their profits to tackle the problems they were set up to address.
Social enterprise or charitable status – a brief guide – Organisations operating for public benefit are often described as being one of two categories – either a charity or a social enterprise. However, these definitions are broad and within each there are many variations of form and structure, and confusingly these often overlap too! This document aims to briefly summarise the two types of organisation and some of the differences between them.
Business advice
Manchester City Council provides free instant live chats with qualified business advisors and business support services for business start-ups delivered by MiVentures
Growth Company – GC Business provides end-to-end business support and financial services for public, private and third sector commissioners, designed to create jobs, enable growth and improve lives.
PeoplePlus Enterprise are funded by the government to offer free business advice from expert advisors alongside: Online learning; E-workshops and seminars; Networkingand peer-mentoring; Financial advice from a specialist and Health and wellbeing support.
Complete Business Reference Advisor COBRA – Search COBRA to find business ideas, research a market and trade legally. Get started in changing career or being your own boss:
- Research your target market
- Write a business plan and understand how to apply your skills
- Find business support and funding providers in your local area
Funding, social investment and community shares
One Manchester social investment strategy – One Manchester, are always looking at ways to support new and growing businesses
Big Society Capital – Get Informed offers practical support, guidance and information to help board members of charities and social enterprises understand the opportunities and risks of social investment
Good Finance – helps charities and social enterprises navigate the world of social investment
Big Issue Invest offer loans to social enterprises
Social Investment Explained – The aim of this guide is to give you an overview of the UK’s social investment market and help you to work out whether and how it’s relevant to your organisation – it’s for anyone involved with a voluntary and community organisation or social enterprise (VCSE), be they a trustee, chief executive or member of staff.
What are community shares? An animated guide
Community Shares refers to the sale of shares in enterprises serving a community purpose. This type of investment has been used to finance shops, pubs, community buildings, renewable energy initiatives, local food schemes, along with a host of other community based ventures.
Support for community businesses
Locality define a community enterprise as: ‘a business which is working to create and retain wealth and employment in a defined community of place (a neighbourhood) or of interest (a group linked by a common interest) and which is controlled by that community. A community enterprise trades on a ‘not for personal profit’ basis.’ Locality have templates, toolkits, legal guidance and other useful resources to help you start up and run your community enterprise. Click here to view the resources
Resources for community enterprises with an asset – If your community enterprise owns or manages land or buildings, or plans to, have a look at these useful resources to help you create a successful asset