🚐 ESEN on Tour!
Last week, the ESEN team hit the road and headed across the UK & Ireland to meet some incredible organisations, venues, creatives and community leaders.
From Belfast to Newport and Neath, we travelled to find out more about how social enterprise and community-led organisations are making a difference in different parts of the UK, the challenges they face, the opportunities they create and what makes their work unique.
And alongside all of this, we had the opportunity to sit down with a very special guest from Sydney, Australia – Jem Siow, vocalist of the band Speed. 🗣️
🌍 Where We Went
- 📍 Belfast – Oh Yeah Centre
- 📍 Newport – The Cab & Freestyle
- 📍 Neath – Rise Above Cancer CIC
- 📍 Sydney (In Belfast) – Speed
🎥 What We Were Doing
We travelled to meet the people behind these organisations and hear their stories first-hand – exploring social enterprise, community, music, culture, youth work and much more.
🎬 The interviews are coming soon and will be posted on our YouTube channel, subscribe here!
🎶 Oh Yeah Centre – Belfast
A home for music in Belfast 🎤
Our first stop was Oh Yeah Centre in Belfast, a music and creative hub with a fascinating story and a huge role within Northern Ireland’s music scene.
The centre was founded by Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol and has grown into a space supporting musicians, artists, young people and the wider creative community.
We sat down to find out more about the work taking place there, how they support their community and what can be learned from the way music and social impact can come together.
🗓️ First Interview
Our Oh Yeah Centre interview will be the first to be posted online, check back on Wednesday 23rd September 2026 on our YouTube Channel and social media channels.
As usual we’ll post a preview video this week to let you know a bit about them ahead of the main interview going live.
🛹 Newport – The Cab & Freestyle
The Cab 🎸
In Newport, we visited The Cab, getting an insight into the work happening within the venue and the role that spaces like this play in bringing people together through music, events and culture.
We were interested in hearing how the venue operates, the community around it and the opportunities that can be created when creative spaces put people at the heart of what they do.
Freestyle 🛹
We also stopped by Freestyle, a skate shop in Newport, to find out more about the local scene and the people behind it.
Our conversations across Newport highlighted some of the different ways that community, culture and grassroots organisations can create opportunities and bring people together.
💚 Rise Above Cancer – Neath
Community, creativity & support 🎙️
Rise Above Cancer is a CIC based in Neath that raises money for those navigating a cancer diagnosis.
Their work brings together fundraising, music and community. They put on gigs, run a podcast, sell merchandise and use creativity and community to help raise money and support people through what can be an incredibly difficult time.
We spoke to the team about their work, their experiences and how they have built a community around their mission.
🎙️ A conversation about social enterprise, lived experience driving the change Aimee wants to make, putting on a huge band like Speed in a small town in South Wales and much more.
⚡ A Very Special Interview – Speed
From Sydney to Scotland 🇦🇺
Our tour wasn’t just about travelling around the UK. We also had the opportunity to sit down with Jem Siow, vocalist of Australian band Speed, for an in depth conversation on community & the great work they do whilst touring the world 🌍
Speed have been making huge waves over the past few years, including appearances at Coachella, Leeds & Reading Festival, while also picking up ARIA and New South Wales music prizes 🏆
We spoke with Jem about the community work Speed are involved in, their commitment to reinvesting in young people in Sydney and the importance of giving back to the communities that help shape artists and musicians.
🎬 The Interviews Are Coming Soon!
We’ve got hours of conversations, stories and insights from our time on the road – and we can’t wait to share them with you.
We’ll be releasing the interviews over the coming weeks, starting with our conversation at the Oh Yeah Centre in Belfast on Wednesday 23rd September 2026.
📺 Keep an eye on our YouTube Channel
Subscribe and follow along as we share the full interviews, stories and experiences from these amazing Social Enterprises doing good across the UK.
💭 Why did we do it?
At ESEN, we’re passionate about sharing the stories of organisations that are doing things differently and creating positive change in their communities. We’re here to support Social Enterprises in Edinburgh but also want to expand the public’s knowledge of social enterprise and the great things going on in their cities.
Travelling to meet people face-to-face gives us the opportunity to understand how different organisations work, what challenges they face and what we can learn from one another.
From music venues and skate shops to cancer support, youth work and international artists – there are so many different ways that people are using creativity, community and enterprise to make a difference. 🌍
