OK, so in fact Outdoor Culture has been trading for 17 months now, but the exciting news is that yesterday I heard from the regulator that our application to become a CIC (Community Interest Company) has been approved. Yay!
This means that Outdoor Culture is now officially a not-for-profit social enterprise - a status that properly reflects my aim to highlight the links between the health of our children, our environment and our society, and to forge fresh and meaningful connections between the arts, education and ecology sectors.
In practical terms, this is something of a rebirth for the company, as it confers extra credibility when meeting new partners and greater autonomy to access funding streams with less reliance on the charitable partners we work with. Outdoor Culture CIC can be bolder and more daring that its predecessor.
The mission remains the same: to create imaginative experiences beyond buildings, that explore human wildness and reflect our natural heritage.
I still can't quite call myself a social entrepreneur without wincing, though. It's a bit worthy and earnest, and wrongfully implies that I know something about business. I may stick with the arts label of creative producer for now ... unless social entrepreneurs get cheaper insurance?
