Community business sector report published by Power to Change
A report written by the Management School’s Alan Southern and Heseltine Institute Fellow, Helen Heap, has been published by Power to Change.
The report reviews the community business sector in Liverpool City Region, focusing on its financial health and the benefits it offers to the local area.
The findings note that while community businesses typically work in sectors such as transport, business support, education and training and food production they have greater endurance than for-profit small business, surviving longer and often with less resource. However, the last decade has seen a considerable drain on their resources, first due to the austerity policies of government and second because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Alan said “This is a subset of the wider social economy. For that reason the City Region Metro Mayor is interested in what we say. The work informs policy via the Liverpool City Region Social and Solidarity Economy Panel set up by the Combined Authority. At a time when there is much rhetoric about purposeful business and social responsibility, these types of business have a robust history of trading in communities with a strong social mission. They have impact and need to be encouraged into new sectors that address some of the global challenges of climate change, inequality and of course, post-pandemic society.”
Alan’s research was recently selected to represent the Management School’s impact by the Chartered Association of Business Schools in their report Business Schools and the Public Good.