Cutting Through The Nonsense

It’s Not a Charity Shop

It was lovely having Sue Harris, founder and CEO of New-U on this podcast. Sue is a wonderfully humble and modest human being who has quietly worked relentlessly over the last decade to provide opportunities to young people in their shop in Castle Quarter in Norwich.  She describes it as a shop that happens to be a charity, with the emphasis on providing good work experiences.  This is instead of being a charity shop providing income for a charity doing something else entirely.  It’s a subtle distinction that we explore in this podcast and goes to the heart of what’s different about social enterprise and the mindsets and values that sit behind it.   Somehow people like Sue just keep going and you get the feeling she’s not done yet.     A link to New-U is below: New-U [https://new-ultd.co.uk/]    My website: www.haslerwhite.com [http://www.haslerwhite.com/]  Our hosts: www.futureradio.co.uk [http://www.futureradio.co.uk/] The aim is to cut through the nonsense by having no nonsense open acronym-free conversations about all the things I wish I’d had support with when running my social enterprise. It’s now my turn to bring some hope, new ideas and inspiration by speaking to people within my network. More resources and all the podcasts can be found on  [http://www.haslerwhite.com/]my website [http://www.haslerwhite.com/]. Find and follow me by heading to: Instagram:  [https://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite]Rebecca White [https://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite] LinkedIn:  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation/]Rebecca White [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation/] Get in touch for inspiring podcast guests and please share them if you think they might be useful for someone else. The track on this podcast is called Funk from Icons8 [⁠https://icons8.com/music/track/funk--3]

Impact is about more than Impact

We covered a lot of ground in our thirty minutes, not least our time both being shaped by working in the Youth Offending Service (YOS) and the impact this had on us and our approach to youth work.  Both founding organisations because we thought we had some better ideas is not unfamiliar to social enterprise founders.   What is less familiar is the journey Simon went on to get his MA at Cambridge University, (circumventing getting a first degree) that opened his eyes to the potential for evidence-based, technology-driven music education and meeting psychological needs.  Noise Solution takes a relentlessly human and impact-first approach to understanding and embedding Self Determination Theory whilst perhaps contradictorily making extraordinary use of Artificial Intelligence to understand their impact.  This drive for an evidence-base isn’t solely to impress commissioners (spoiler - it doesn’t) but about improvements not just to their organisation but to the wider eco-system of commissioning of which they are a critical part.    Links to the Noise Solutions and Transceve websites are below:  https://www.noisesolution.org [https://www.noisesolution.org/] https://www.transceve.org [https://www.transceve.org/]    Two links below to talks given by Damien Ribbans (Operations Director) and Simon Glenister about their work with AI and Impact:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4WLu8ZRHFY [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4WLu8ZRHFY]  https://www.the-sse.org/resource/ai-unlocking-social-impact-insights-from-everyday-conversations [https://www.the-sse.org/resource/ai-unlocking-social-impact-insights-from-everyday-conversations/]    My website:  www.haslerwhite.com [http://www.haslerwhite.com/]    Our hosts:  www.futureradio.co.uk [http://www.futureradio.co.uk/]    The aim is to cut through the nonsense by having no nonsense open acronym-free conversations about all the things I wish I’d had support with when running my social enterprise.  It’s now my turn to bring some hope, new ideas and inspiration by speaking to people within my network.  More resources and all the podcasts can be found on  [http://www.haslerwhite.com/]my website [http://www.haslerwhite.com/].    Find and follow me by heading to:  Instagram:  [https://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite]Rebecca White [https://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite]  LinkedIn:  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation/]Rebecca White [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation/]  Get in touch for inspiring podcast guests and please share them if you think they might be useful for someone else.    The track on this podcast is called Funk from Icons8 [https://icons8.com/music/track/funk--3]

A No Brainer

In this second conversation with Matt Parfill, CEO and founder of Grace Enterprises, we explored in more detail his and his organisation’s approach to alternative finance or in this case, social investment.   It feels like Matt is clear that whilst it's flexible and more equitable in terms of the power dynamic (you CAN call some of the shots), it's also not for the faint hearted.  Matt is uncritical of his lenders, but recognises the inherent bias in the system that plays out in women-led and minority-led enterprises accessing less alternative finance than male-led enterprises. [https://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/seuk-report/backbone-of-britain-state-of-social-enterprise-2025/]  Like the East of England, where Matt is based (East Midlands) is a social investment ‘cold ‘spot’ - meaning it is not receiving anything like its fair share of investment.   This podcast aims to tackle the conversation about what it looks like in reality to both raise awareness and dispel some myths.   From the perspective of the investor and the wider eco-system of funding for the voluntary sector, social investment presents a uniquely compound impact opportunity - that of not just a social return, but an ever increasing financial return that can continue the virtuous circle of compounding impact on top of impact.   For the right organisation and investor, we think it’s a no brainer.   Matt’s business empire and further details can be found below: https://www.graceenterprises.co.uk/ [https://www.graceenterprises.co.uk/]  https://www.radiantcleaners.co.uk/ [https://www.radiantcleaners.co.uk/]  https://www.jubileeevents.co.uk/ [https://www.jubileeevents.co.uk/]  https://www.halfthestory.uk/ [https://www.halfthestory.uk/]  We also mentioned social investment and social enterprise support, so here are some more useful links:  ⁠https://www.goodfinance.org.uk/case-studies/grace-enterprises⁠ [https://www.goodfinance.org.uk/case-studies/grace-enterprises]  ⁠https://www.goodfinance.org.uk⁠ [https://www.goodfinance.org.uk]  ⁠https://www.sibgroup.org.uk/⁠ [https://www.sibgroup.org.uk/]  ⁠https://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/⁠ [https://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/]  ⁠https://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/seuk-report/backbone-of-britain-state-of-social-enterprise-2025/⁠ [https://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/seuk-report/backbone-of-britain-state-of-social-enterprise-2025/]  My website:  www.haslerwhite.com [http://www.haslerwhite.com/]  Our hosts:  www.futureradio.co.uk [http://www.futureradio.co.uk/]  The aim is to cut through the nonsense by having no nonsense open acronym-free conversations about all the things I wish I’d had support with when running my social enterprise. It’s now my turn to bring some hope, new ideas and inspiration by speaking to people within my network. More resources and all the podcasts can be found on  [http://www.haslerwhite.com/]my website [http://www.haslerwhite.com/].  Find and follow me by heading to: Instagram:  [https://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite]Rebecca White [https://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite] LinkedIn:  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation/]Rebecca White [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation/]  Get in touch for inspiring podcast guests and please share them if you think they might be useful for someone else.  The track on this podcast is called Funk from Icons8 [https://icons8.com/music/track/funk--3]

Making the Big Calls

Choosing the right business model for the world today. Listento Catherine share her bold decisions - from constituting a mental health organisation as a Company Limited by Guarantee to being forced to make the seemingly perverse decision not to do the very thing that makes an organisation sustainable - to take paying customers.   The life of a CEO of a social enterprise is full of tradeoffs and informed risk taking. In this podcast with Catherine Gray, CEO and Founder of Cup-O-T in Norfolk, Catherine is very candid about the journey she has been on as a social entrepreneur, the investment in herself as well as her organisation and the need to move fast in a world that often doesn’t move fast enough.  Thank you to Catherine for both sharing the highs and lowsas well as reminding us of the brilliance of social entrepreneurs right here in East Anglia.       Cup-O-T: Wellness and Therapy Services https://cup-o-t.co.uk/ [https://cup-o-t.co.uk/] The aim is to cut through the nonsense by having no nonsense open acronym-free conversations about all the things I wish I’d had support with when running my social enterprise. It’s now my turn to bring some hope, new ideas and inspiration by speaking to people within my network. More resources and all the podcasts can be found on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠my website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://haslerwhite.com/]. Find and follow me by heading to: • ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.instagram.com/rebkawhite⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [http://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite] • LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Rebecca White⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app] • Get in touch for inspiring podcast guests and please share them if you think they might be useful for someone else. • The track on this podcast is called ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Funk from Icons8⁠⁠ [https://icons8.com/music/track/funk--3] These podcasts are brought to you by me, RebeccaWhite of Hasler-White Limited in partnership with the wonderful people at Future Projects in Norwich

Walking the Walk

How to pivot in a world of shrinking traditional funding. What a consultant observes in the charity and social enterprise sector. The importance (or not) of walking the walk as a third sector leader who moves into consultancy. In this podcast with Jodie Marshall from Mantle, Jodie shares her extraordinary story of developing a social enterprise barely out of her teens and how her desire to create a trading organisations rather than a charity has shaped her career since then. Thank you to Jodie for bringing such fresh perspectives and an obvious wealth of knowledge and insight in a sector that appears to be in a permanent pivot. These podcasts are brought to you by me, Rebecca White of Hasler-White Limited in partnership with the wonderful people at Future Projects in Norwich. https://www.mantleco.io [https://www.mantleco.io] https://amindapart.org.uk The aim is to cut through the nonsense by having no nonsense open acronym-free conversations about all the things I wish I’d had support with when running my social enterprise. It’s now my turn to bring some hope, new ideas and inspiration by speaking to people within my network. More resources and all the podcasts can be found on ⁠⁠⁠⁠my website⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://haslerwhite.com/]. Find and follow me by heading to: • ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.instagram.com/rebkawhite⁠⁠⁠⁠ [http://www.instagram.com/rebkawhite] • LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Rebecca White⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hasler-white-facilitation?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app] • Get in touch for inspiring podcast guests and please share them if you think they might be useful for someone else. • The track on this podcast is called ⁠⁠⁠⁠Funk from Icons8⁠⁠ [https://icons8.com/music/track/funk--3]