Social Enterprise Silver Mark Holders
Find out more about the first organisations to achieve the new Social Enterprise Silver Mark
We are delighted to showcase the pioneering organisations who are leading the way in purposeful progression along a pathway to achieving excellence.
Care Opinion
Care Opinion is the UK’s leading independent online feedback platform for health services, which has been sharing people’s experiences of health and care services online since 2005.
They have built a national and international reputation for an innovative and value-led approach to online feedback.
Care Opinion runs a website that allows patients to share their stories about using health services, and then encourages health services to respond to that feedback, showing when they make a change. They believe that online public feedback is a powerful way to help make health services better.
“SE Mark is the only social enterprise accreditation body, and at Care Opinion we saw an opportunity to not only say we operated as a social enterprise with social enterprise values, but also to go through the accreditation process. Hence, we became an early adopter – 11 years ago. We are committed to improving how we run Care Opinion and having been involved in the best practice pilot, we were excited to see that it had helped to develop the new Silver Mark that delved deeper into our business practice and was a mid-way between SE Mark and Gold Mark. We are also both proud to have been one of the first few SE Silver Mark accredited organisations!
Being transparent and having an external and independent accreditation means we are a more credible social enterprise in public sector procurement processes, and our team are very proud too! The accreditation panel also makes recommendations for improving further in particular areas enabling continuous improvement. To us at Care Opinion, the Silver Mark demonstrates our commitment to demonstrating our growth and maturity as an organisation in all areas of the business, and how we operate as a value driven organisation with social benefit as the central aim.
The encouragement and support from Lucy and the SE Mark team was invaluable. We found the accreditation process fairly straightforward as we had largely already achieved the relevant criteria, we had good levels of help and support from Nicky and the team who ensured we presented everything correctly- demonstrating that relevant standards were being met.
We would encourage any social enterprise to embark on the Silver Mark accreditation process as it is a great marker of success and transparency for your business. It will also enable you to identify areas for improvement as well as have objective feedback from the assessors on all areas of your business. At Care Opinion we are also happy to have a chat with any SE Mark holders considering the next step in accreditation!”
Lendology CIC
Lendology CIC is a social lender, which disrupts traditional lending with decisions powered by partnerships and people, enriching homes and lives through affordable finance.
They believe that every homeowner should be able to live in a home where they can feel safe, warm, and secure and for many, access to affordable lending is key to making that happen.
Lendology currently manages over £10 million on behalf of local councils and have made a positive difference to over 1,500 households. They look beyond the figures, it’s the impact on clients that matters.
“As an established social enterprise trading for over 20 years, we are always looking for ways to increase consumer awareness and trust in the industry. The silver mark accreditation gives the industry another opportunity to work together to highlight our commitment to social value, and at Lendology we were thrilled to be part of this pilot programme. We encourage all social enterprises, regardless of size or trading experience, to consider this amplified award and would be happy to share our experience of the process to any fellow SEs. We found the process really straightforward but at the same time, very thorough. Building an ethical and inclusive economy is key to achieving sustainable growth, and the social enterprise industry already acknowledges this. Consumer and stakeholder buy-in about the ethics of every social enterprise is vital to ensuring the continued growth of the sector for a better economy for all, and the Silver Mark recognises this commitment to shared values”
Selby Trust
Selby Trust was set up as a charity in 1992 by local people who recognised the need for a multi-purpose centre led by the community and third sector organisations.
It manages community facilities, such as the Selby Centre, which brings together a rich mix of individuals and organisations, primarily from BME, refugee and other historically excluded communities in Tottenham, Haringey, North London and beyond.
The Selby Trust has helped deliver valuable resources to the local community for many years, and looks to continue to help the community in innovative ways as they respond to the latest challenges within society.
“The Social Enterprise Silver Mark acknowledges the hard work of many at the Selby Centre, creating opportunities for local people, and providing an environment which unlocks the potential of local people.
As a charity with a social enterprise focus that supports local community and grassroots level organisations towards health and wellbeing, social justice, and eliminating poverty to people from diverse and vulnerable groups, having a silver mark gives credibility to our work and allows us to continue doing what we do best.
We’re looking forward to the new upcoming plans for our Selby Urban Village schemes, while ensuring our existing services and activities remain ongoing throughout the development is a major transition that comes with both challenges and opportunities. The silver mark application process allowed us to reflect on the improvements we’ve made over the past 3 to 4 years, and also made us recognise areas of improvement, including representation, measuring social value impact and accessing the monetary benefits associated.
We hope the silver mark will extend our reach and opportunities towards partnerships and fundraising.’’
