Social Value UK – What You Need to Know

Have you ever wondered about the Social Value UK policy and how it relates to businesses and communities? If this is something you have been considering, our experts are on hand today.

We’ll provide some new insights into what the Social Value UK policy entails and what this might mean for everyone in our local and national communities.

What is the Social Value UK Policy?

The Social Value UK policy was made in 2012 and then implemented at the end of January 2013. The policy requires that all businesses operating in the public sector provide social value for their communities; this could be investments into new activities and sights, environmental benefits, or economic support.
However, while social value is primarily aimed at UK public businesses, firms that operate exclusively within the private sector could still reap significant benefits by investing in social value. In addition, it’s worth considering that businesses operating as contractors may also need to prioritise social value if they intend to take on government projects or contracts.

The Benefits of Social Value for Businesses

Many businesses perceive social value as a nuisance – however, this isn’t the case. Indeed, while the Social Value UK act may impose additional requirements on businesses, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing for firms to consider. Indeed, social value is highly beneficial for businesses – notably since it allows the business to quickly improve its reputation with the community.

When given a choice, it’s unsurprising that consumers are often much more compelled to support businesses that actively engage in social value than those that don’t.

Indeed, social value policies help provide numerous perks and benefits for communities, and this can make the business itself seem incredibly attractive to consumers. As such, if you have been looking for a simple way to increase your business’s reputation with local consumers, the social value might be just the option you need.

Of course, it’s important to consider here that social value isn’t necessarily quite as straightforward as providing a few nice things for the community. Nevertheless, with a long-term commitment to social value, you can ensure your business is making large steps overall.

It’s worth considering that social value is also quantifiable; this helps provide a simple measure for your business to assess its performance compared to other local teams.

In turn, social value policies allow businesses to take great strides in terms of enhancing their competitiveness overall. So, why to leave this to chance; ensure your business is taking the necessary steps through its social value policies as a result!

The Benefits of Social Value for Communities

Naturally, communities can benefit significantly through social value efforts. Most commonly, social value is provided by businesses for their local communities; this value could be delivered in many different forms. Nevertheless, the overarching goal of social value is to boost local communities, be it for economic, social, or environmental purposes. As such, communities can achieve plenty of benefits when supporting firms that deliver social value.

Final Thoughts

Undoubtedly, the importance of providing social value for local communities is becoming more and more staggering. Still, for many businesses, this is easy to overlook. Nevertheless, while some businesses might consider the Social Value UK policy to be yet another requirement to meet, it can benefit both the business and its consumers.
With this thought in mind, we strongly recommend that all companies spend a little time considering how they could invest in social value. Moreover, from the consumer’s perspective, ensuring that local firms know the sort of investments that could provide social value can be an excellent way to ensure that the ideal changes are made.