While currently receiving a higher media profile,
social entreprises are not new. Rather, “social
entrepreneurship” is a new label, which is
arguably an appropriate way of describing the
work of community, voluntary and public
organisations as well as private firms working for
social rather than only profit objectives. In the
UK, social entrepreneurship has its origins in the
nineteenth century when philanthropic business
owners and industrialists including Sir Titus Salt
of Saltaire and Robert Owen, demonstrated a
concern for the welfare of employees by
improving their working, education and cultural
lives. Since this time, social entrepreneurship has
been associated with community enterprise and
development, education, churches, charities, the
not-for-profit sector and voluntary organisations