Social Enterprise and Community Ownership: Why Keeping Wealth Local Matters

Last week I held a debate in Parliament on community ownership and social enterprise and put direct questions to the Government – if we want to revive the towns left behind by deindustrialisation, we must start by supporting people in our communities from the ground up.

For decades, discourse about post-industrial towns, particularly in the North of the UK, will almost always veer towards decline, deprivation and industries lost during the wave of UK deindustrialisation. It has transformed the social and economic fabric of these towns, leaving a profound and lasting impact on their communities.

But it is not the whole story.

Researchers calculate around 23 million people live in ‘older industrial Britain’, a term encompassing older industrial towns, former coalfields, and 10 main regional cities in the Midlands, North, Scotland and Wales. For older industrial towns, issues highlighted by the Industrial Communities Alliance include slow job growth, low pay rates, a prevalence of low-skilled work and worklessness, and a reliance on jobs in neighbouring cities.

Yet, despite this reality, the communities themselves have never lost their spirit. People have retained an unwavering community spirit, manifesting itself as creativity, innovation, and a desire to build and contribute.

This is where social enterprise and community ownership come in.

Community‑owned businesses and co‑operatives are run by local people who make decisions collectively and share the benefits. Social enterprises operate on similar principles as they trade for a social or environmental purpose and reinvest the majority of their profits into that mission.

Across the UK there are around 131,000 social enterprises — roughly one in every 42 businesses. Together they contribute around 3.4% of GDP, employ more than 2.3 million people, and reinvest over £1 billion each year into social and environmental causes.

Community businesses alone number around 11,000, generating nearly £1 billion in income. Crucially, for every pound spent with a community business, around 56 pence stays in the local economy. Almost half operate in the most deprived communities — proof that these models thrive precisely where they are needed most.

If the aim is inclusive, place-based growth, then supporting social enterprise and community ownership is a key ingredient of our economic strategy. This Labour Government has already made important progress. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill introduces a landmark Community Right to Buy, giving local people the opportunity to protect and take ownership of the spaces that matter most to them. Programmes such as Pride in Place and wider investment in town regeneration are already helping communities begin to rebuild.

However, if we want these models to move from the margins to the mainstream, community ambition needs to be reflected in political ambition. I called on the Government on three essentials. Firstly, access to patient and flexible finance. Secondly, procurement systems that value social impact, not simply the lowest price. Thirdly, proper business support so local people with ideas are not left to navigate the system alone. Organisations such as Locality, Co-operatives UK and Social Enterprise UK, whose expertise already helps communities turn ideas into thriving enterprises, should also be supported and strengthened.

I was pleased to have the opportunity to highlight the outstanding businesses we have in Leigh and Atherton.

In Tyldesley, the community‑led initiative For Tyldesley is restoring heritage buildings and breathing life back into the town centre. Just down the road, The Pelican Centre, one of the first swimming pools in the country to become community‑owned, is still thriving 14 years later.

In Atherton, The Snug, led by grassroots champion Rachael McEntee and supported by the Music Venue Trust, is building a vibrant cultural scene from the ground up.

In Leigh, Leigh Works is creating space for small businesses and digital innovation, inspiring the next generation of local talent.

And of course, Leigh Spinners Mill. Once a disused red‑brick giant of our industrial past, has become a bustling hub of creativity and enterprise, home to dozens of community organisations and local businesses.

These are not isolated stories. They are part of a growing national movement.

While the Government’s Industrial Strategy rightly talks about driving growth across the country, too often that growth has yet to reach smaller Northern towns where the backbone of the economy is not large corporations but small, locally rooted businesses. This is where social enterprise and community ownership come in – keeping wealth local, creating locally, and ensuring growth is rooted in the places that need it most.

So, the question for Parliament is whether they will back it. When we invest in community ownership and social enterprises, we are not just supporting businesses, we are rebuilding pride, strengthening resilience and giving local people the power to shape their future. That is the fair future our towns deserve.