One of the best things about working in social enterprise is being part of community of people and organisations who are determined to innovate and graft to deal with the problems we face.  

Growing something from an idea into a sustainable business which delivers significant, measurable impact is often hard work. But the whole thing is made easier and more enjoyable by being surrounded by others with a similar mission, who face comparable challenges in turning plans into a concrete reality. And it’s extremely motivating to see other organisations making a difference to important problems.

So it was great to go to the party celebrating the announcement of the New Radicals awards for ‘Britain’s brightest innovators and entrepreneurs’, as chosen by The Observer and Nesta. At Dot Dot Dot, we’re proud to be on the list of 50 individuals and organisations - chosen from more than 1000 nominations – who are doing the most to change and improve life across the country. It’s fantastic to be recognised and celebrated. But the best thing is being part of the community that the New Radicals list is drawn from – lots of inspirational people and organisations who are, in different ways, working effectively and intelligently to change things that they care about, and helping each other along the way. You can see some of us talking about the work we do in Nesta’s video from the event.

John Mulholland, Editor of The Observer, called the list “an antidote to apathy and cynicism”. Being part of the social enterprise sector regularly feels like that – it is possible to change things for the better through hard work and good ideas, so it’s worth battling through the stressful, boring and painful bits.  

If you need a little bit more inspiration, have a read of our blogs about some of the great causes our guardians have been helping out this month – the Ian Mikado school, the Great Men project and the Big House Theatre Company.

All the best,
Katharine and the Dot Dot Dot team