Corporate spending with social enterprises surges by 46%

Compass increases VCSE spending to £7.4m in 2024

Compass Group UK and Ireland spent £7.4m with voluntary, community and social enterprises (VCSEs) in 2024 – a 60% increase on the previous year. The total spend has now reached £16m, moving the group closer to its target of £30m. The group’s procurement arm, Foodbuy Group, launched the Pitch Social initiative in 2022 to support this aim. The programme invites social enterprises, B Corporations and minority-owned businesses with strong social and…

Corporate spending with social enterprises surges by 46%

New figures released yesterday reveal a landmark surge in procurement spending with social enterprises, as 33 big businesses together spent £179 million with suppliers that use profits for social or environmental causes, a 46 per cent year-on-year increase, the highest since the initiative launched in 2016. The figures come from the Year 9 report of the Buy Social Corporate Challenge, an initiative led by national sector body Social Enterprise U…