Social Enterprise Manager
Lead and develop a social enterprise — an organisation that trades for social and environmental purpose — working across sectors with support from Social Enterprise UK and the School for Social Entrepreneurs.
Low
High
Entry via social enterprise delivery, third-sector management, or public sector commissioning roles. SSE programmes: 6–12 months part-time cohort learning. CIC registration: self-administered via Companies House. No formal qualification required, but sector experience is essential.
No mandatory qualification; School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) programmes (e.g. SSE Fellowship, Start Up programme) widely valued; CIC administration knowledge; social investment literacy; MBA or degree in business/social policy advantageous; IoF Certificate in Fundraising if significant grant income
possible
What you do
Social enterprise managers lead organisations that use business models to achieve social, environmental, or community objectives — reinvesting trading surpluses into their mission rather than distributing them to private shareholders. Social enterprises include community interest companies (CICs), charitable companies that trade, cooperatives, employee-owned businesses, community benefit societies, and development trusts. They operate across health and social care (social care co-ops, supported employment providers), housing (community land trusts, housing co-ops), food (community-supported agriculture, food banks with trading arms), environment (community energy co-ops, repair cafes), and skills (social training businesses, employment programmes).
As a manager you are responsible for developing and sustaining the trading model that funds the mission, managing finances (including grant income, trading income, and social investment), building and leading the team, and maintaining governance compliance with Companies House, the FCA (for co-ops and community benefit societies), and the Charity Commission (if also registered). Strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, commissioning relationships (where the social enterprise delivers public services under contract), and impact measurement are all core responsibilities.
The social enterprise sector in the UK is large: Social Enterprise UK's UK Social Enterprise Survey reports over 100,000 social enterprises, contributing approximately £60 billion to the UK economy and employing nearly one million people. The School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) — a national organisation with a network of regional learning hubs — provides practical business and leadership development programmes specifically for social entrepreneurs. Social investment (through bodies such as Big Society Capital, Charity Bank, and Co-operative and Community Finance) provides capital for social enterprise growth outside conventional bank lending.
Why this career is resilient
Social enterprises operate at the intersection of market demand and unmet social need — a positioning that provides natural resilience in communities underserved by both the public sector (due to budget constraints) and the private sector (due to insufficient profit margin). As local authority commissioning has contracted and community need has grown, social enterprises have expanded to fill service delivery gaps in social care, employability, and community infrastructure.
Government policy consistently supports social enterprise through Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 commissioning, Social Value model contracts, and investment from the National Lottery Community Fund and Dormant Assets Scheme. The growth of Employee Ownership as a business succession model is creating new social enterprise formation as private businesses convert to employee ownership trusts. The mission-alignment, community rootedness, and relational service model of social enterprises cannot be replicated by national corporate contractors — giving well-managed social enterprises a structural advantage in their markets.
A typical day
Morning: presenting quarterly trading accounts to the board of directors — walking through the income mix (60% contract income from the local authority, 30% trading, 10% grant), explaining a £15,000 variance against the budget, and proposing a cost reduction plan. Midday: meeting with a new community foundation funder to discuss a pilot grant for a new youth enterprise programme — preparing the pitch to show how the programme will transition to earned income within three years. Afternoon: staff team meeting — reviewing the delivery plan for the current commissioning contract, problem-solving a staffing gap, and discussing feedback from the latest client satisfaction survey. End of day: reviewing a social investment application to Big Society Capital for expansion capital.
Routes in
Employer-funded training
Some employers — particularly the NHS, emergency services, and larger care providers — run their own funded training programmes. You apply for a job and train as you work.
Full-time college course
Study full-time at a further education college, usually for 1–2 years. You will need to fund yourself or apply for a student loan (available for Level 4+ courses).
Pay and costs
Earning potential: Social enterprise manager: £28,000–£45,000 depending on organisational size and sector. CEO of medium social enterprise: £40,000–£60,000. Smaller community enterprises may pay significantly less. Pay in health and social care social enterprises is often aligned to local authority commissioning rates.
Training costs: SSE programmes: bursaries and subsidised fees available through SSE partnerships with local enterprise partnerships and funders. CIC registration: £12 online. ICF fundraising qualifications: £500–£2,000. Many SSE learners access fully funded places through employer or public funding.