Chapter Two considered the existing evidence relating to organisational size and performance, and examined the implications when applied to the context of social care. Size was considered as an independent variable whose relationship with organisational performance could be tested through qualitative and quantitative research, even while recognising that sometimes the preferred size of an organisation was driven by management fashion rather than an evidence base. The assumption that size was an observable and measurable variable was the starting point for our research, and remained the underlying premise for testing the four hypotheses about micro-enterprises: that they were likely to produce valued outcomes, and to be more cost-effective, personalised and innovative than larger organisations. The findings chapters that follow this one outline what the research told us about those aspects of organisational performance.

This chapter offers a somewhat different perspective, setting out a range of issues linked to what it means to be micro, and the organisational identities evident within that. Through a discussion of the approach we took to sampling, it highlights the practical dilemmas attendant in identifying and working with organisations whose size was not fixed and stable over the life of the research. The chapter also considers the different governance structures within the organisations that we included in the study, which themselves can be captured as a set of organisational identities as well as legal forms. These included sole traders and partnerships, as well as charities, limited companies and statutory providers. The chapter draws on interview data to look at the motivations people had for setting up particular types of organisation, helping to illuminate the implications of having different organisational types within local care markets. It also uses the data to highlight how size and organisational type was part of the identity of these providers, with the identity of micro, for example, being embraced as a form of distinction both from larger providers in their locality and from social care's institutionalised past.

Finding micro-enterprises

The total number of care sector micro-enterprises in England is not known. Skills for Care data suggests that the numbers are over 6,000 – although its figures are likely to be an underestimate, since they do not include sole traders and those self-employed people who are not eligible for VAT.