Enterprise policy publications

In response to the Government’s new proposals for a regeneration framework, Make Your Mark said that the framework should more explicitly recognise and address the role of enterprise culture in regeneration.

Research released today (18 November 2008) show a strong belief and optimism in the role entrepreneurs and business can play in the challenging global economic downturn. The findings have been released to mark the start of the UK’s fifth Enterprise Week which has inspired – and will run simultaneously with - the first ever Global Entrepreneurship Week.

There are currently 3000 business support schemes in England, and the government wants to reduce this to no more than 100 by 2010. As part of its efforts to simplify business support, the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulartory Reform (BERR) carried out a consultation to gather the views of businesses, as well as private, public and third-sector organisations who are involved in business support. Find out more about the consultation

The In work, Better off consultation document sets out Government proposals to deliver a step change in the support offered to those who are most disadvantaged in the labour market. While we welcome the progress that has been made in increasing employment rates, we believe that enterprise and social enterprise must be a key part of any jobs strategy if it is to succeed. Enterprise does not only create jobs, it is also key to the skills set demanded by employers.

The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) is preparing its new Science and Innovation Strategy, to be launched in the spring of 2008. The Government has asked stakeholders to identify innovative ways to promote innovation across both the public and private sectors and to help more people acquire the skills necessary for successful innovation.

In response to the consultation, Make Your Mark said that the Government must broaden its approach if it is to build a nation of innovators. The Make Your Mark response set out that:

The London Skills & Employment Board’s forthcoming strategy, to be published early 2008, aims to ensure everyone in the city is benefiting from London’s economy by enhancing and sustaining London’s labour market. In response to the consultation on how to make best use of London’s resources and people, Make Your Mark said that enterprise skills and entrepreneurial attitude boost employability and therefore the strategy must recognise the relevance of enterprise skills beyond self-employment and the importance of intrapreneurship.

To mark the fourth annual Enterprise Week in November 2007 we kick-started a discussion on the Future Face of Enterprise.

We asked over 50 entrepreneurs, business people, industry experts, social commentators, academics what they thought would shape the future face of enterprise in the UK. The result was this explosion of fantastic opinions.

We asked the think-tank Demos to explore some of these trends in more detail by inviting a range of people to write articles.

This August 2004 position paper sets out the need for a broader approach to enterprise and Make Your Mark's perspective on key concepts that underpin the campaign. It explains how culture can be changed and the importance of taking action at different levels.

Our major policy report on the state of enterprise culture in the UK sets out the role of education, employment, community and leisure in creating a new enterprise generation.

You can also download individual chapters from this report.

Increasing numbers of young people in the UK are demonstrating positive attitudes to enterprise. Despite this upsurge, there remains a major gap between young people who aspire to run their own business and those who actually do it.

Mind the Gap: from Youth Enterprise Aspirations to Business Creation and Growth suggests how we can move young people from thinking about enterprise to becoming entrepreneurs, moving from attitude change to behaviour change.