In recent years, social value has shifted from a ‘nice-to-have’ to a serious commercial consideration in property development, particularly across public sector and regeneration projects.
Fast forward to the present day, following the Procurement Act 2023, which placed greater emphasis on wider social, economic and environmental outcomes within public sector commissioning, and it has become one of the deciding factors as to whether a development proposal is accepted and who wins the contract.
However, many property firms are still ‘retrofitting’ social value into plans as a development add-on, despite its growing importance within procurement processes. It is not down to a lack of desire but often not knowing where to start.
At a time when financial metrics continue to dominate, social value can still be secondary because its benefits can be harder to measure, with many firms still struggling to evidence outcomes through clear delivery plans, agreed targets and long-term reporting. Some firms also worry that going beyond vague claims about ‘creating opportunities’ will create expectations among councils and communities that a development cannot realistically meet.
SOCIAL VALUE
Yet this approach overlooks the benefits that clearly defined and measurable social value can offer to a proposed development. As councils and other public bodies face growing pressure to demonstrate tangible outcomes and benefits for local communities, broad pledges around ‘supporting communities’ or ‘creating opportunities’ are no longer enough on their own.
Social value commitments which lack specificity or quantifiable impact are increasingly viewed as lacking credibility, particularly within increasingly outcomes-focused procurement and planning processes. This means development plans with the potential to deliver genuine community wellbeing can still struggle to secure support.
LOCAL INSIGHT
Delivering bids infused with local insight can help to provide this specificity. Without that local knowledge, bids often default to generic commitments that sound positive at a national level but fail to address the issues that matter on the ground.
For example, promises around apprenticeships and local skills programmes are unlikely to carry much weight with councils if the more pressing concerns in the area are soaring rents and struggling local businesses.
When local insight is applied, it can improve the overall proposal by helping developers shape social value commitments around the issues communities and councils are actually prioritising, whether that’s affordable community space, youth services or support for local businesses.
This, in turn, helps to shape procurement plans, training and employment programmes, as well as community engagement. If the social value offer is built into the delivery rather than tacked onto the end, the bid immediately becomes more convincing to public authorities because it gives evaluators clearer outcomes and evidence to assess against.
CHARITY PARTNERSHIPS
Charity partnerships can be an effective way to deliver social value in the property industry. They offer a substantial connection between the promises made and the real local need behind them, as well as to trusted delivery networks and measurable outcomes.
A charity organisation will typically have a more robust understanding of the specific pressures in an area than a development team approaching from the outside, particularly if they operate locally.
Their resources can help to identify the most useful contribution that can be made to a community, whether this is homelessness prevention, mental health support, or food security.
By leveraging the existing infrastructure of local charities and good causes (rather than reinventing the wheel), property companies can tap into the most trusted organisations in our communities who know what is needed at a grassroots level and, perhaps critically, deploy their support quickly.
ACCOUNTABILITY EVIDENCE
From a measurability standpoint, charities can also help to provide the evidence and accountability which many local authorities are looking for. Because of this, they are an asset in tracking the participation, outputs and impacts of various campaigns.
This can include measurable outcomes such as the number of residents supported through community programmes, volunteer hours delivered, or direct feedback gathered from local communities.
Our partnerships, for example, provide businesses and public bodies with clear evidence around participation, local need and community impact, helping to mitigate concerns around social value box-ticking and strengthening the credibility of wider development proposals.
As planning becomes more outcomes-focused, especially in terms of demonstrating clear public benefit, generic pledges added as an afterthought to a proposal will no longer cut it.
DESIGN AND SUSTAINABILITY
With communities becoming more sceptical of developments that feel extractive and unaffordable, with a disregard for local need, social value can give property firms a way to show they truly understand the area where they wish to build and, importantly, that they care.
Successful property firms can assert strong design, sustainability credentials and the ability to deliver. However, not all can prove a solid understanding of community need and deliver meaningful social outcomes.
The ones which build measurable, community-led social value into bids from the outset are those who stand out from the crowd when it comes to planning processes, and will stand the test of time.
