The aim of the Bath Social Innovation Programme is to help social innovators and entrepreneurs to develop the skills and a business case they need to progress their project in the healthcare and wellbeing sectors.

The three-day course takes place 18-20 June at the Innovation Centre in Broad Quay, Bath, and is being led by Simon Bond, Director of the Innovation Centre; Dr Richard Fairchild, Senior Lecturer in Corporate Finance at the University; and Dr Louise Brown, Reader in Social Work at the University.

Dr Richard Fairchild said: “Social Innovation and social entrepreneurship are rapidly growing areas, both in a practitioner and in a scholarly research sense.

“This is an exciting program, in which experienced professionals and academics will offer participants an in-depth understanding of the issues involved in setting up a social enterprise such as developing a business case, understanding your customers, how to achieve sustainability, consideration of governance issues, and how to access finance.”

Dr Louise Brown said: “At a time of such austerity in the public sector there is a real impetus for organisations to try to find creative and innovative solutions to existing problems.

“At such a critical period this programme offers individuals and service providers an opportunity to think through and explore new ways of delivering services when they are under such pressure to do more for less.”

Simon Bond added: “We’re really excited about offering this programme to social innovators for the first time. We've been well supported by the region's social enterprise eco-system and networks, and received funding from the University to make bursaries available to a number of applicants.”

Details on the programme and how to apply, including details on bursary application, are available here: http://ubic.org.uk/about-ubic/our-services/entrepreneurship/