I’ve always considered myself to be a rebel, usually one without a cause or a clue. But I’ve always valued new ideas and people that are willing to go against the grain to achieve some kind of new outcome or shatter hard-boiled paradigms.

So, the title of this conference “Rebel Ideas” appealed to me, particularly when it’s tied into a subject that is close to my heart: Social Value (SV).

As someone who isn’t exactly a Spring Chicken, I sometimes wonder if the younger generation is as passionate about subjects that I was (and still am).

In years gone by, the concept of social value was barely an after-thought, if not a fringe topic somewhere faraway in the outer-reaches of the leftfield.

While I’ve been a little heartened how this subject has been adopted by mainstream corporations in recent years, I’ve feared that the encouraging growth of the subject may wither on the vine, overtaken by that ever-present relentless drive for profit.

That’s one of the reasons why I enjoy working at UKREiiF. We are very focused on SV, in fact (and somewhat frustratingly) we are the only organisation in our field that measures social value! 

Working with Loop, our research showed that between 2022 and 2023 we generated £3.2 million in SV! Not only that, UKREiiF supported 50 local SME’s, initiated 480 hours of community learning and interventions, and raised nearly £100,000 for charity.

Yet, often when we lead the way on topics like SV, we expect to see a throng of followers and competitors copying us.

They don’t.

So, as you can understand, I was fairly cynical that SV will ever take-off…

The good news is that Social Value – and it’s future – seems to be in good hands!

The conference saw some very passionate speakers who gave their perspective on their challenges and their successes.

Facilitated by Olivia Sutcliffe chair of Young Professionals in Social Value, the panellists hailed from varied backgrounds, and it was evident that each had individual takes on the subject, created by their own experiences.

For example, Sophie Roffe, Social Value Lead at the Government of Jersey, works within a realm that isn’t required to adhere to UK social value policies because Jersey doesn’t come under UK rule.  She described how only 5% of companies that tender for work on the island have any social value policy at all.

I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to promote the topic if it’s not a prerequisite to win work.

At the other end of the scale, I was encouraged greatly by what Rudi Nicholls, Social Value Manager Clarion Housing Group, had to say.

In essence, Clarion is the largest housing association in the UK that provides homes for 350 000 people, and it seems that social value is right at the heart of their procurement process.

From what Rudi said, Clarion has embedded social value firmly into its procurement strategy and has a clear social value policy. They have steering groups within each directorate of the organisation that encourages collaboration. Clarion has KPI’s specifically for SV and an internal budget.

Interestingly, Clarion has mandatory guidelines for potential contractors to follow, but stipulates how they will collaborate with partners to help them fulfil their SV obligations.

Hearing this, I remember thinking that Clarion is leading the way with SV – and not just in the housing sector!

The term ‘meaningful Social Value’ arose several times throughout the session i.e., how to ensure that it’s not all about KPI’s, but achieves genuine social change. I.e., “how to get outcomes” or “what do we actually achieve?”

Loved it that the panel really got down to the brass tacks.

Holly Onstenk, Associate Social Value Consultant CHY Consultancy, suggested that consulting the local community first is the ideal method. She said that asking how many apprenticeships they want, and then asking contractors what they need to do that means that KPI’s and actual results will tie-in.

She suggests that more education and research within the community rather than partnership is perhaps a logical way to get better results.

Rebel!

One of the best topics that the panel discussed was how to ensure that SV sustains itself and the message is passed to coming generations.

Panellist Ali Sajedi Senior Social Value manager London Borough of Waltham Forest recommended that to get the ball rolling, all directorates within organisations should have their own SV policy so that each sector will have a common goal to encourage collaboration and ‘invent a culture’.

In the end they all agreed that a formalised structure within organisations where SV was a recognised role was the way to go.

For me, this bright and passionate panel demonstrated to this old SV advocate that SV is here to stay.

Bravo to the panel!

See the video here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTD1jMFypwc&feature=youtu.be