I meet Ravi on a drizzly afternoon. He warmly welcomes me inside Parliament On King which, when free from the gentle bustle of King Street’s patrons – feels just like a cosy living room. Turns out, this is exactly what the space was originally, now covered floor-to-ceiling in books and dotted with sweet trinkets. He sits in front of a cream, slightly rusting Vespa – one of the many relics that has always caught my attention walking past the café. Of course, there’s a story behind it – something I quickly come to realise is true for many of the bits and pieces within the modest space.

2024 ended on a high note for our local social enterprise sector when the NSW Government's response to the final report from the parliamentary inquiry into procurement practices came back with lots of support for:

• Buying from social enterprises

• Setting and measuring against social and environmental targets

• And much more…

If someone had told me everything that we would achieve as an organisation and as a sector in 2024, I don't think I would have believed them. For SECNA, as a grassroots organisation with a tiny team of part-time staff (but a huge number of engaged, passionate, energetic members), the highlights have been astounding.

The Centre for Policy Development have released a paper on 'Banking the benefits: Better aligning budget process rules with Measuring What Matters' which details how the federal Budget Process Operational Rules can be reformed to incentivise long-term, holistic policymaking that prioritises wellbeing.

SECNA lodges submission to the inquiry into the procurement practices of government agencies in NSW

Social Enterprise Australia has been working with the federal government on the Social Enterprise Development Initiative and we are excited to share that the opportunity for the social enterprise sector to have our say is here.

SECNA CEO Kylie Flament will be on of the speakers at the inaugural Social Impact in the Regions conference in Coffs Harbour from 6-8 September.

The United Nations General Assembly has made a historic resolution to support the social and solidarity economy.

“It is absolutely time that we start recognising that businesses are great tools for getting things done but that the measure of success is not how much money one organisation or person can keep for themselves, but how much they can do for the world”, Kylie says.

Our thoughts are with our members in Northern NSW who have been affected by the terrible floods.

If you and your social enterprise are looking to help, we have some information for you here.

Building on conversations with and around the social enterprise sector, the Yunus Centre mapped a possible path forward to an Australian social enterprise strategy. Based on this, the Social Enterprise National Strategy (SENS) team is working on five things in the lead up to the Social Enterprise World Forum in Brisbane in September 2022.

Off the back of huge advocacy efforts, the Federal Government has announced trailblazing funding to support refugee employment. It is a $24.6 million four-year grant program with the Department of Home Affairs. This funding will be available to social enterprises to create opportunities for employment for refugee and humanitarian entrants. It will help the sector to maximise the critical role we all know it can play. It will show how government and social enterprise can together unlock greater economic inclusion.

The Social Enterprise National Strategy (SENS) project is entering its next phase of development: activation. With this comes changes to governance and an Executive Director.

The Social Enterprise Unconference was the first initiative in a series of ongoing activities designed to unite the sector in preparation for the Social Enterprise World Forum (SEWF). The interest (almost 700 registrations!), engagement and enthusiasm is testament to the collaborative strength of the social enterprise sector and its hunger for a more cohesive ecosystem.

At SECNA our vision is to create a thriving social enterprise sector in NSW & ACT, but we know that’s not something we can achieve on our own. That’s why we’ve been collaborating as part of an Advisory Group working to develop a national social enterprise strategy for Australia. The advisory group has just released the first reports with a proposed pathway forward.