Community and socio-spatial context in a social entrepreneurship education programme for NEET young people in coastal regions.

Abstract

Entrepreneurship studies are yet to explore vulnerable young people and their relationship to place in social entrepreneurship projects. Drawing on a large-scale social entrepreneurship education programme for at-risk NEET students and NEET young people in coastal regions, this article explores how the concept of community was interpreted and applied by ten project partner organizations working directly with young people over three years in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the UK. Semi-structured focus groups with project youth workers revealed multiple meanings of community, observed through young people’s behaviours, preferences and challenges, as well as varied applications of these meanings in school and community hubs. Enablers and barriers influencing young people's engagement with social entrepreneurship were also identified. Recommendations are made for strategies to embed flexible, youth-informed notions of community within social entrepreneurship education programmes for vulnerable young people.