14 Jul 2022 | CE Jobs, Jobs, News & Events
THE ROLE
Part-time role, Monday to Friday working as part of the Operations Team and carrying out manufacturing, assembly, packing, distribution and printing responsibilities as directed by the Operations Manager.
This is a opportunity to gain valuable work experience and learn new industry skills in a supportive environment. Ideal as a stepping-stone to a career or to fill a gap in your CV.
DUTIES
- Achieving set production targets.
- Meeting quality standards.
- Adhering to Health & Safety guidelines and regulations.
- Maintaining and handling machinery, tools and equipment as per company and manufacturer guidelines.
- Following the principles of good manufacturing housekeeping.
- Receiving and recording goods inwards and outwards in accordance with company guidelines.
COMMUNITY EMPLOYMENT SCHEME (CE)
The main objective of CE programme is to enable long term unemployed people enter the labour market through work experience, training and support. The programme supports people to move from unemployment to the routine of work and to develop work skills, technical skills and personal skills to enable progression to work or further training.
ABOUT SPEEDPAK
Speedpak is a social enterprise providing work experience and training for people who are long term unemployed in the following commercial businesses:
- Contract services specialising in providing customised contract packing and finishing services to industry;
- Manufacturing, supplying and distributing promotional products including rosettes, sashes and badges and branded clothing. The business operates an online shop and exports its products
RATE OF PAY
CE rate of pay applies for a 19.5 hour week
ELIGIBILITY
This position is funded by the Department of Social Protection under CE and eligibility conditions apply.
TO APPLY
Please email jobs@speedpak.ie with your CV and a cover letter.
If you have any questions about this role, please contact us on 01 867 1707. We are happy to take your call.
5 May 2022 | News & Events, Social Enterprise
Speedpak Group is seeking to make contact with other Work Integration Social Enterprises [WISEs] who wish to be featured in the WISE Ireland directory that was launched in May 2022.
“Work Integration Social Enterprises exist mainly to improve the employability and employment prospects of people furthest from the labour market.” (O’Hara & O’Shaughnessy, 2021).
This project was undertaken in order to raise awareness of WISEs, particularly among the business community. Our goal is to increase commercial, procurement and philanthropic opportunities for social enterprises.
The directory can be viewed at www.wiseireland.ie. Inclusion is free of charge.
We are continuting to promote the directory to large businesses to highlight how they can create positive social impact by collaborating with WISEs. We demonstrate how, by partnering on commercial or social projects with WISEs, those businesses can achieve their Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs] and realise their Corporate Social Responsibility [CSR] ambitions.
The project was initiated as part of the Government’s 2022 Awareness Raising Initiatives for Social Enterprises [ARISE] programme, approved by Government with support from the Dormant Accounts Fund.
Please get in contact with us at info@wiseireland.ie so that we can include your organisation’s details in the directory …and together we can raise the profile of our sector and provide greater supports for people who are long-term unemployed.
Further details for social enterprises is available on the WISE project landing page at www.speedpakgroup.com/wise
Updated: 3 August 2022
19 Nov 2021 | News & Events
European Action plan for the Social Economy – The Seven Pillars
The following seven pillars for a European Action Plan for the Social Economy have been proposed by Social Economy Europe.
Pillar 1: Establish a common understanding of social economy enterprises and organisations in Europe.
Pillar 2: Improve the visibility of social economy enterprises and organisations and of their values and characteristics.
Pillar 3: Measure and further document the weight of the social economy and its effective contribution to the socio-economic development of the European Union.
Pillar 4: Provide a conducive ecosystem for the growth of social economy enterprises and organisations, supporting them to access to finance and to scale up, and by establishing the necessary legal framework, allowing them to fully operate trans-nationally in the single market.
Pillar 5: Further integrate the social economy in EU funds and programmes such as the ERDF, ESP Plus and the cohesion funds.
Pillar 6: Foster the role of the social economy in the external action of the European Union.
Pillar 7: Consolidate and strengthen a permanent and structured dialogue between EU institutions and the social economy.
The European Action Plan for the Social Economy is due to be launched on Wednesday 8th December 2021.
2 Nov 2021 | Featured, News & Events, Transforming
Dublin-based Speedpak Group has been nominated as one of Acumen’s 100 Corporate-Ready Social Enterprises.
The list, and accompanying survey-based report Corporate-Ready—How Corporations and Social Enterprises do Business Together to Drive Impact was created by international nonprofit impact investment fund Acumen. It showcases a diverse collection of established social enterprises, from a range of industries, that are ready to partner, collaborate and do business with corporations.
The report points out that “corporations, large and small, play a key role in creating a fairer and more equal world” and that “all sectors need to work together on our most pressing issues for a sustainable future. It continues: “engaging with social entrepreneurs that develop scalable business models to address social challenges can accelerate those efforts.”
The report dispels misconceptions about social enterprises relating to size, capabilities and capacity while case studies draw attention to successful partnering, illustrating how barriers between stakeholders can be overcome.
A key finding from the survey was that social enterprises have significant social impact that is aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs] and that they can “deliver concrete and measurable progress on corporate sustainability targets”.
The report was supported by IKEA Social Entrepreneurship, and developed in collaboration with members of the World Economic Forum’s COVID Response Alliance for Social Entrepreneurs. The social enterprises featured were chosen because they are already selling to corporations and offering direct benefit to marginalised groups.
2 Nov 2021 | News & Events
Social procurement refers to the purchase of goods and services, by businesses and governments, from social enterprises and other organisations that have a strong ethical mission. It considers not just the economic impact of a purchase but also the positive social and/or environmental impact that that purchase entails.
This multi-outcome, value-added approach is growing, as businesses and governments worldwide seek ways to trade and operate more sustainably. This growth is also due in no small measure to lobbying by the social enterprise sector, which has strengthened and proven its worth over the past three decades.
Positive support for social procurement by governments worldwide
Social procurement is increasingly featured in government policy, as the benefits to society of buying from local, ethical suppliers are being recognised. The Irish Government has vowed in its National Social Enterprise Policy for Ireland 2019-2022 to “support capacity-building for social enterprises in relation to procurement processes through workshops and training” and to “work with stakeholders to identify how to improve opportunities for social enterprises in the business-to-business supply-chain and in public procurement.” Through the Social Considerations Advisory Group it will “help policy makers to better understand how procurement can be used to facilitate the advancement of social policy objectives within appropriate and structured public procurement guidelines”.
This commitment suggests an appetite to rework traditional procurement policies, in order to accommodate social enterprises. Going further, a new legal structure for social enterprises – none currently exists under Irish law – could support a better understanding of what social enterprises are and where they ‘fit’ with procurement managers and their processes.
A key finding of the 2020 Buying for Social Impact (BSI) project (commissioned by the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and the European Commission Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs) was that “…socially responsible public procurement [SRPP] is easier in countries where legal frameworks or legal forms for social economy enterprises exist”. It continues: “it is also easier for social economy enterprises to access public procurement procedures in countries where those legal frameworks or legal forms exist”.
Businesses are using social procurement to achieve their sustainability goals
Businesses are also buying from social enterprises. Though less active than governments, according to The State of Social Procurement in Australia & New Zealand 2021 report, they are nonetheless under pressure to become more sustainable, enhance their reputations and cultivate positive relationships with the communities in which they are based. Tammy Darcy, CEO of SERI has highlighted “the need for social impact to be included as a consideration in the wider economy by all enterprises, not just social enterprises”.
Social procurement in the UK has been propelled by Social Enterprise UK’s successful Buy Social Corporate Challenge. The campaign’s corporate focus has resulted in a £165m spend, by 27 participating businesses since 2018, on goods and services supplied by social enterprises.
Social procurement – a strategic choice
Social enterprises offer corporations the opportunity to merge sustainable initiatives with corporate and commercial strategy. This allows corporations to ‘hit the ground running’ with projects that provide social as well as commercial value, while not having to deviate significantly from strategy. To governments, they offer flexibility and the opportunity to collaborate on projects where local interest, knowledge and expertise are key to undertaking a project efficiently.
Social procurement offers a lifeline to social enterprises that helps them to grow, to develop a stronger voice and, through collaboration, to expand their influence. It provides them with the means to gain greater recognition as real, innovative businesses operating in competitive marketplaces. It enables them to forge a greater standing in their communities and to become a stronger force for creating positive social change.
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Social Procurement Resources
Buying social: A guide to taking account of social considerations in public procurement
Publications Office of the European Union
A Guide to Social Procurement
Buy Social Canada
Green Public Procurement: Guidance for the Public Sector
Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], Ireland
Guide to Social Value in Procurement
Evolve UK and Enterprise Ireland
The State of Procurement in Australia and New Zealand
Centre for Social Impact, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia
