Social Value… And Then What?
In the housing sector, it's important that we understand the broader impact of all our asset management and development investment. True social value encompasses the effects on people’s wellbeing, such as improved mental health and stronger community connections.
To fully understand social value, we must be prepared to consider everything that contributes to it. Without effective measurement, how can we really know the difference we are making in people’s lives?
There are many tools designed to help quantify social value. Social Return on Investment (SROI) is one of the more common systems that helps translate a range of outcomes into monetary value. For instance, a £1 investment might yield £30 in social value. While useful, this only tells part of the story. What about the personal, longer-term impact? In housing, benefits can endure for years. It's important we also consider how lasting our contributions are when assessing value.
We need to provide clear, meaningful insight into the real social impact of our members work. Beyond asking every individual how we have affected them, how can we justify our influence if we only rely on financial data?
That’s why CHIC has adopted HACT’s Social Value Insight platform (hact.org.uk). It enables us not just to monetise activity, but to evaluate the total impact of a project - social, environmental and economic. The UK Social Value Bank, at the heart of this tool, places wellbeing at the centre of value measurement. It allows us to reflect both individual and community benefits, alongside cost savings to the public sector. This means we can report comprehensively on how our social value activity contributes to improving lives.
All CHIC procured contracts must deliver a minimum of 1% of turnover to social value. CHIP’s Social Value Manager engages with contractors and suppliers every quarter to track and understand this delivery. We then share the results with partners and members, ensuring they know the impact on their communities and can plan for future support where it’s needed most.
It’s essential we continue to review and reflect on the social value we deliver across the communities we serve, measuring the worth of positively changing someone’s life - that’s truly invaluable.
We will be developing our annual report in the coming weeks. If you are a CHIC member or supply chain partner and would like to feature your social value outcomes in this report, please get in touch.
Emma Macaulay | emacaulay@chipcharity.org.uk
