Writing about financial affairs in the period between Christmas and New Year is a daunting challenge. Honestly, who wants to read about business on Boxing Day?

The task is particularly arduous in the current economic climate. Workers are cutting back on festive spending as the cost-of-living crisis grinds on, business confidence is falling, and a UK recession is just a hair’s breadth away. The cup of cheer is far from overflowing.

Those looking for inspiration as we head towards what will be another tough year in 2024 should ponder the potential of profits with purpose. When faced with a challenging economic landscape, social enterprises have been shown to be more resilient than their traditional business counterparts.

READ MORE: Recession danger for UK economy as GDP falls in Q3, October

It is no coincidence that the social enterprise sector gained a great deal of momentum in the years since the international banking crisis, which was followed by a protracted period of economic austerity, the subsequent economic shock of the Covid pandemic, and the ensuing spike in global inflation. Individuals, families and communities have been pushed to the financial brink, giving rise to the urgent need for doing business in a way that has a positive social impact.

According to the latest survey of the sector by Social Enterprise UK, there are roughly 131,000 “mission-led” organisations in the UK employing 2.3 million people and generating approximately £78 billion in annual turnover. From this they made more than £1.2bn in profits, of which £1bn........

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