The real meaning of social enterprise

Mistaken identity can be highly damaging to charities and social enterprises fighting to solve social and environmental problems. A4e has been, up to now (A4e's 'social purpose' company tag banned, 22 August), able to parade itself as a "social purpose" company, a term that arguably overshadows its primary objective - profit maximisation for private gain. Now, the term "social enterprise" is being hijacked by other big businesses too. Salesforce, a US megacorp providing software, has tried to trademark "social enterprise" and is claiming that if companies use its product they will become "social enterprises". The likes of Richard Branson and Angela Ahrendts of Burberry have already signed up, and more are set to follow.

The move is wholly misleading and threatens the real social enterprise sector's future - a global movement of businesses that exist to tackle social problems. Two decades of hard work have gone into building the movement; it has heavy political and economic investment here in the UK, including the launch of Big Society Capital earlier this year, and has global recognition, cited by the EU and the UN. Its achievements and work cannot be lost to the latest corporate marketing quest for private profit and greed. Social enterprise must be protected.

Peter Holbrook
Chief executive, Social Enterprise UK

In 1908 Philip Snowden, future chancellor, stood on the steps of Huddersfield station before a huge crowd, demanding nationalisation of the railways (Comment, 29 August). All of his arguments - profiteering, fragmentation, poor service and high fares - are just as relevant now, with the added point that the taxpayer is paying vast sums to support this "insane" system, as Richard Branson describes it. Snowden had a vision of our railways being run by what we would now call a "social enterprise" which has a wider social remit than shareholder profit. We need a single, socially owned InterCity network dovetailing with regional not-for-profit train and bus operators.

Prof Paul Salveson
Hannah Mitchell Foundation