There is a need for research of the social enterprise sector in general but this paper
suggests that the governance function requires more attention than others due to its
significance. Social enterprise governance is an area that attracts much attention from
those seeking to decide whether an organisation should be eligible to be considered for
government contracts or alternately apply for grants (Walmsley, 2003). Evidence is
demanded by external parties that demonstrate that social enterprises have democratic
legitimacy through the involvement of stakeholders at the highest levels of the
organisation (Pearce, 2003). Therefore, any suggestion of a shift towards a stewardship
model, which can be cast as anti-democratic as it will inevitably exclude some
stakeholders on the basis of expertise, requires mapping. In theory, if not necessarily in