Rachel Woolliscroft
Rachel Woolliscroft of Wates Group says the construction industry underestimates its capacity to boost local enterprise and improve people’s lives.
The construction industry is inextricably linked with the whole of UK society. Construction reaches into every area of the UK, every city, town and village, and therefore we – perhaps more than any other industry – have an opportunity to influence how people experience everyday life: from delivering offices where workers are motivated to spend half their waking hours, to building schools that encourage learning and creative thinking, to providing safe, warm, long-lasting homes.
But the physical aspect is only one area where we can have an impact. Given our active presence in so many communities, we have an opportunity to offer training and employment prospects, inspire more young people to join this diverse industry and support local SMEs and social enterprises in the supply chain to invest in local economies. Since January 2013, this obligation has been enshrined in law for any services procured by the public sector.
Construction’s often long-term presence in communities offers the chance for lasting relationships with suppliers and residents to be developed, enabling our industry to consistently lead the way in delivering on this agenda.
Having the value derived formally recognised and measured in the tendering process has therefore largely been welcomed by both purchasers and suppliers. Indeed, a recent survey of local authorities and housing associations – Communities Count: the four steps to unlocking social value – undertaken by Social Enterprise UK, and co-sponsored by Wates, PwC, the Chartered Institute of Housing and the Orbit Group, showed the benefits of formally recognising social value:
- 71% of respondents said delivering social value had led to better service delivery;
- 52% said it had resulted in savings;
- 82% reported that it had led to an improved image of their organisation;
- 78% said it had led to better community relations.
But the fact that the construction industry is leading the way in embedding social value is only part of the story. I would argue that we need to look beyond our borders and do more to support public organisations.
"Construction’s often long-term presence in communities offers the chance for lasting relationships with suppliers and residents to be developed."
According to the research above, a third of local authorities and housing associations are not considering social value across all their services. Many, particularly among the smaller housing associations and local authorities, specifically struggle to apply social value to small contracts.
While alone this may not amount to much, when extrapolated across the country, across multiple contracts, it means that overall they are potentially missing out on passing on tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of pounds worth of value. Given the construction industry’s experience, what can we recommend these organisations do to help them gain a greater understanding of how to fully integrate social value.
Broker a deal
Brokerage networks are one solution. These effectively match services and procurement teams with pre-qualified suppliers and social enterprises. Networks such as this take away the fear of not knowing where to start; moving organisations away from a mind-set of not being able to see an immediate way of delivering value through a service, so choose not to pursue the matter, to breaking down barriers and opening up a dialogue with social enterprises and finding a solution together. With 90% of respondents to the Social Enterprise UK survey saying that social enterprises are effective, for organisations that are attempting to dip a first toe in the social value water, brokering contracts with social enterprises via a network is a tried-and-tested route.
Keep an eye on the prize
It is important that we do not lose sight of the end-game. It is tempting to see social value as another hoop that must be jumped through, and think that social value involves only getting people into employment. It does not. Successful integration through the supply chain takes social value beyond merely enabling social change – such as helping people get jobs – to having a transformative effect on a community: lowering crime rates, improving health or cleaning up an environment.
For example, CleanStart – a social enterprise which trains and employs ex-offenders to carry out void clearance and maintenance – has not only helped 22 people into permanent employment but has led to reduced re-offending rates and an estimated saving to the criminal justice system of £10m.
In addition, do not underestimate social value’s internal benefits. From our research, we know that embedding social value leads to more innovation and cost savings across the board. If you view social value as a help, not a regulatory hindrance, and work across sectoral and organisational boundaries to unlock it, you’ll reap the benefits.
Rachel Woolliscroft is sustainability director of the Wates Group
