About Us
Who We Are
At Initiative for Social Entrepreneurs (iSE), we believe talent and ambition exist everywhere, but access to opportunity does not. We exist to close that gap.
Our Purpose
We enable individuals, communities and organisations to use enterprise as a force for positive social, environmental and economic change. Social enterprise plays a vital role in tackling inequality, creating meaningful employment and driving community-led regeneration. That is why we work to remove the barriers that stop people with ideas and ambition from building sustainable, purpose-led organisations that respond to real needs.
Our Mission
Our mission is to accelerate the growth and sustainability of the social economy. We deliver business support, training, mentoring and consultancy to individuals, community groups and purpose-led organisations at every stage of their journey. We work with people who have just had their first idea, and with established social enterprises looking to grow, diversify their income or strengthen their governance.
Partnership is central to how we work. We bring together communities, local authorities, health partners, education providers, funders and the private sector. Together, we help social enterprises find new opportunities, investment and routes to market, while supporting our partners to deliver social value.
We want to see stronger, more resilient social enterprises, more jobs and volunteering opportunities, and communities better equipped to shape their own futures.
Our Values
For over 20 years, we have worked alongside social entrepreneurs, community groups and purpose-led organisations, delivering place-based social enterprise development, start-up programmes and consultancy for scale and impact. That experience has taught us what makes enterprise thrive, and it has shaped the values that guide how we work with communities, partners and stakeholders every day.
- Impact-driven: we focus on outcomes that improve lives and create lasting change.
- Empowering: we build confidence, capability and independence at every stage of the enterprise journey.
- Collaborative: we bring people, organisations and sectors together to amplify collective impact.
- Innovative: we embrace creative thinking and practical solutions to complex challenges.
- Inclusive: we open enterprise and opportunity to everyone, particularly those from underrepresented or underserved communities.
- Accountable: we act with integrity, transparency and high professional standards in everything we do.
Together, these values drive our commitment to a stronger, more inclusive social economy, where enterprise is a force for good.
How We Support
Partner: We deliver programmes for and alongside Local & Combined Authorities, working together to prioritise and grow the social economy by tackling unemployment, deprivation and social inequality.
Support: Whether you have an idea or an established social enterprise ready to grow, our advisers provide tailored one-to-one consultancy and funded programmes to help you start, grow and sustain your organisation.
Educate: We deliver enterprise education and training in schools and community groups, building the confidence, skills and pathways that open enterprise up to everyone.
Connect: We work with businesses to deliver social value and ESG outcomes, creating inclusive supply chains that open new routes to market for social enterprises.
Championing the Social Economy
We are champions of the social economy, and Birmingham is where we prove what it can do. Rooted in this city, we believe business can and should be a force for good, and we work every day to make that the norm, not the exception. Our ambition: a thriving, inclusive social economy where everyone with a purpose-driven idea has the support to turn it into lasting impact!
Our Spaces
WECH
Women’s Enterprise & Community Hub, Sparkbrook: Nestled in one of the most vibrant and diverse communities in the country, our Hub offers specialist support for women-led enterprises and provides versatile spaces for training, events, meetings, and counselling. We have a number of shop fronts and serviced offices available for rent.
Avoca Court
Digbeth Social Enterprise Hub: Home to LivingWell Consortium of mental health services, our Digbeth Social Enterprise Hub office boasts a modern working space, boardrooms and larger meeting rooms available for hire.
Ready to embark on your social enterprise journey or collaborate with us on a project?
Reach out today, and let’s work together to create a world where business is a force for good, one enterprise at a time.