The evolution and future relevance of social value

Overview

Community Benefits have been a presence in public sector construction contracts in Scotland since the mid 2000s but they have evolved from ‘output’ oriented activities such as jobs, work placements and school visits into more ‘outcomes and impact’ aligned objectives such as reducing inequalities and increasing educational attainment within communities.

Increasingly referred to as social value, such contractual commitments to deliver additional value are now enshrined in procurement legislation throughout the UK and impact service and professional contracts as well as construction/infrastructure projects. Organisations have increasingly had to demonstrate the positive impacts they can deliver in the communities in which they are working.

At the same time, expectations on organisations to become more sustainable have driven many to evolve their Corporate Responsibility strategies and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) approaches to include initiatives around diversity, inclusion and fairness to reach beyond their workforce and into communities and other stakeholders.

This rapid evolution has raised many questions for organisations around their purpose, how they resource any initiatives and, crucially, how they measure them.

How is social value to evolve in the future? Will it become another tick box exercise or will it take on increasing significance in a world where inequality is increasing, capitalism and growth are being questioned and there is a climate emergency?