FM is a top performer when it comes to social value delivery

The facilities management industry delivers an average £3.5 million in Social Value per project, according to a new data driven insights report, launched by online measurement and reporting solution Social Value Portal (SVP).

It has found that while Social Value has recently gained unprecedented momentum throughout the UK, there are some clear front runners delivering meaningful change to local communities.

The industry-first report, draws on data held by SVP dating back to 2016, and analyses Social Value commitments and delivery across the public, private and third sectors. It also considers responses from 800 independent Social Value experts from the 2023 Success Factors survey.

Since the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 came into force, the public sector has largely driven the Social Value movement, requiring a minimum 10 per cent Social Value weighting in all procurement.

In 2020, SVP helped its members measure and report almost £1 billion of Social Value, compared to £7.3 billion in 2023 (a growth of 650 per cent). Real Estate is the fastest growing industry for Social Value delivery, having grown by 2,239 per cent from 2020 – 2023.

As one of the biggest opportunity areas for Social Value, the report lays out the top performers in real estate by region, with the East of England showing the biggest year on year growth (35 per cent) out of 500 projects measured.

Based on average Social Value delivery per project in 2022 and 2023, small businesses actually outperform larger organisations. Those with a headcount of less than 50 reported an average of £3.4 million in Social Value per project, compared to those with a headcount of 1,000 – 5,000, who reported an average £1.7 million per project. The top spot, delivering an average of £10.2 million in Social Value, goes to organisations that employ 51 – 200 people.

As an early adopter of Social Value, the construction industry takes a clear lead, delivering an average £14.6 million per project, followed by the security and defence sector (£6 million), real estate (£3.8 million) and engineering (£3.8 million).

The most successful Social Value initiatives, as measured by the Social Value TOM System™ include using local business, employing locally, cutting emissions, donating to community projects, and offering apprenticeships.

Guy Battle, CEO, Social Value Portal said: “We are finding that organisations on average are delivering more Social Value than they are in fact committed to, which is extremely encouraging.

“Social Value initiatives also tend to span economic, social and environmental themes, suggesting that we are starting to grasp the importance of collaborating to build a fairer, greener and more prosperous society where everyone will flourish.

“At a time when the more disadvantaged in UK society are feeling the effects of years of austerity the most, our mission is to continue to work with our members to reach the target of delivering £100 billion in Social Value by 2026.”