This paper will explore the genesis of the interest and development of social enterprises in the United Kingdom (U.K.) and how this has been driven by a changing social policy agenda which has provided a framework for the development of social enterprise in the U.K. and in the wider European Union (E.U.). Although we can see a clear direction of travel that has emerged over the last thirty years this policy framework is complex made up of a mix of provision, leaving questions about how coherent the social policy agenda actually is towards to social enterprise and social innovation
