Social economy is a field of economy that is not as popular in Poland as in other countries. Every year more and more companies are being bulid up, but their promotion and society engage in the products and services of such companies is still small.
Social enterprises are business entities which activities have social objectives. They use business instruments and technologies to achieve social benefits. They operate under the different brands and legal forms, such as social cooperatives, Institutions of Professional Activity, Mutual Insurance, Public benefit companies, non-profit organizations, non-governmental organizations, labor cooperatives, loan guarantee and loan funds (including micro-loans), and finally non-governmental organizations activities in various forms . Social enterprises dedicate their profits for social purposes . As economic entity, they should generate income, but as business entities, operating for social purposes, are not focused on maximizing profit for shareholders. Their aim is to maximize social benefits, eg by providing good quality public services, working for local development or restoring dignity and economic independence to social excluded people.
The absence of the law supports causes chaos in the sphere of functioning of social economy. It does not change regulations of the legal conditions of their activity. The consequence of this is reduction of the possibility of using various forms of social enterprise because it has to be based on the legal regulations which do not exist.
