A new business hub aimed at tackling poverty and unemployment by encouraging social enterprise business start up within local communities has been given the thumbs up by Mayor Daire Hughes who said the scheme can help breed new life into Newry. The Southern Area Social Enterprise Hub was launched in Ballybot House on Tuesday and will act as an outreach hub to stimulate social economy projects across Newry and Mourne. Providing an incubation space for new and developing social enterprises, staff at the new Hub – which will be located in Lurgan but provide for council areas of Newry and Mourne, Armagh Banbridge Craigavon and Dungannon – will also offer information training and support to assist local social enterprises to get started and grow. One of the nine new hubs spread across the North, the new Southern Area Social Area Enterprise Hub is supported by the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister on Delivering Social Change Programme. Derek Browne from Insight Business Consulting said: “Our social enterprise sector has the potential to create thousands of jobs across Northern Ireland and developments like The Southern Area Social Enterprise Hub help embed new social economy projects in our communities. At eh Newry launch we gave information on the programmes we are offering and how interested parties can access support to make sure their business ventures flourish. Mentoring on important business aspects like marketing will be included and we have strong backing from the Newry and Mourne Enterprise Agency and the Federation of Community Groups in Newry.” Mayor Daire Hughes added: “Initiatives like this can breathe new economic life into the Newry and Mourne area and it is important to spread knowledge and skills among the social economy sector here. I wish everyone involved in the Southern Area Social Enterprise Hub project the best of luck and I look forward to seeing the results.” Anyone interested in working with the Southern Area Social Enterprise Hub can get in touch by email at southern@socialenterprisehub.co.uk or visit the website www.southsehub.co.uk or follow on facebook or twitter @SouthSEHub
9th September 2014
Newry Democrat
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