Case Study

None of the case studies identified by the SAGA project report to have used a specific social impact measurement tool or method. Nonetheless, various do report on a specific impact they have had. Most of the case studies report back in terms of creation of employment, or benefits for those working at the organisation.

In line with the spirit of a cooperative, the members  of Treasure of Völgység Social Cooperative in Hungary, who participates in the production activities of the processing plant, receive a regular salary. Furthermore, they receive a secure, regular income as they are also self-employed. At the same time, fruit growers in the area will have supplementary sales opportunities through the plant’s processing activities. In addition to its economic activities, the cooperative provides social benefits to its members, depending on its financial means and without jeopardizing the achievement of its primary goals, as well as supporting the cultural, educational, public cultural and sports activities of its members.

Fructus Start Dairy Product Social Cooperative from Hungary reports to have created employment for 5 to 6 people who transferred from public employment schemes.

Social Cooperative for Márok also from Hungary, used the “FÓKUSZ” tender to employ 5 people for three years. Unfortunately, despite the income generated through the general store the cooperative could not generate enough income for further employment.

The Social TeaHouse in Bulgaria, employs young people over the age of 16, who are trained by specialists in order to acquire work habits that help them to become competitive on the labour market after leaving the program. Each of them has assigned personal mentor who takes care of the personal growth of the young person. The effect of this activity can be traced among the successfully realized professional young people who have gone through their program – more than 50% find their way and lead a fully independent and decent life.

The SunFarm Camp in Bulgaria, reports a positive environmental impact, it cooperates with the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds – using their experts for guides and trainers and cooperates with the Municipality of Stambolovo in terms of cleaning the containers in the village

Maria´s World foundation in Bulgaria uses the revenues gathered from catering services are invested in vocational training of people with intellectual disabilities in culinary skills and support for starting work in the open labour market.

There are however, many case studies of social enterprises using a specific method or tool. Based upon the selection of tools and methods in this unit, the following case studies are considered relevant:

Discovering hands is a social enterprise officially founded in 2012 by the gynaecologist Dr. Frank Hoffmann. He set out to fight the problem that breast cancer is the most common cause of death for women between 40 and 44 years of age in Germany. It trains and deploys visually impaired women with their highly developed sensory skills to detect the early signs of breast cancer. These so-called ‘medical tactile examiners’ (MTEs) are trained at vocational training centres for people with disabilities and deliver breast examinations at doctors’ practices. Discovering hands first introduced the social impact reporting, based upon the GECES standard explained in this unit, in 2012. The report describes first the context of breast cancer prevention and detection in Germany, the organization’s approach and operating mode,  the target groups, their potential, their interaction and their possible revenue contributions. http://www.discovering-hands.de/start/english-version.html

MillRace IT (UK) provides advanced IT on-site training, teaching people with mental health problems how to refurbish, maintain, service and build computers. The goal is to create a bridge to employment. MillRace IT also has a strong environmental mission to re-use computer equipment and prevent it from going to landfill. The organisations used in 2005 the SROI method described in this unit. The case study shows that for every £1 invested, £7.40 of social value is created each year for society in terms of reduced health care costs, reduced benefit costs, and increased taxes collected. However, there are a number of other benefits, such as increased self-confidence of those recovering from mental ill-health that are not included in the analysis. https://socialvalueuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/MillRace%20IT%20SROI%20case%20study%202005.pdf

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