At 15, CICs Are Old Enough to Drive — But Can They Steer?

Fifteen years. The CIC legislation came into force on 1 July 2005, which means the model is now old enough to drive. It’s appropriate imagery, because driving is what the CIC movement has been trying to do for a decade and a half — seize the wheel of the British economy and steer it in a more social direction.

The metaphor only stretches so far. Unlike a fifteen-year-old, the CIC model has a fairly impressive track record. Nearly 19,000 organisations on the register. An annual approval rate of over 5,000. A regulatory system that’s achieved full cost recovery. A community of practice that spans every sector and every region of England and Wales.

But like any adolescent, the CIC movement has some growing pains it hasn’t resolved.

There’s the identity question. Are we social enterprises with a specific legal wrapper, or are we a distinct movement with our own values and objectives? The answer should be both, but we’ve never fully articulated it in a way that sticks.

There’s the support question. The infrastructure to help CICs form, grow, and thrive hasn’t kept pace with registration numbers. Thousands of new CICs are setting out every year with minimal guidance and no dedicated support system.

There’s the finance question. The social investment market has grown to £5 billion-plus, but most CICs still can’t access the capital they need.

And there’s the recognition question. Fifteen years in, and most people — including most policymakers — still don’t know what a CIC is.

The fifteenth anniversary is a natural moment for reflection. The CIC model has achieved more than its founders could have hoped. Fifteen years ago, if you’d told me we’d have 19,000 CICs by 2020, I’d have laughed. But the model has also fallen short of its potential. The infrastructure gap, the finance gap, the recognition gap — these aren’t minor issues. They’re fundamental barriers to the CIC movement fulfilling its promise.

Fifteen years old. Old enough to drive. But the question is whether the CIC movement can steer itself toward the destination its founders imagined, or whether it will continue to drift where the road takes it.