Wondering what a co-operative or a social enterprise are and whether this would be a good model for your business / organisation? Meet Kevin Marquis, the social enterprise adviser from BIC.

Kevin has over 30 years experience of working within the North East’s most deprived communities and helping the most disadvantaged within them to use ‘enterprise’ and ‘self employment’ as a means to create their own job opportunities and improve their life chances. An essential element of his work is his specialist knowledge and practical experience of co-operative and social enterprise development.

Kevin has recently joined the North East Business Innovation Centre, and prior to that he was employed by SES, a regional social enterprise and co-operative development agency. Kevin has assisted in the launch of 100’s of traditional businesses, and has helped with the registration of over 200 Community Interest Companies and Co-operatives. In the North East he has helped build a social enterprise sector comprising 215 social enterprises with a combined turnover of £35million and employing over 2000 people.

Key skills

• SME support i.e. business counselling and business growth planning
• Legal structures – all types including a specialism in social enterprise and co-operatives
• Specialist if the externalisation of public sector services into staff-led co-operatives
• Community group enablement and stakeholder engagement