Ten talking points from our Social Value Proposition webinar

We highlight ten talking points from Advice Cloud and Social Value Business' recent webinar.

By Joe Fuller

We recently hosted a webinar with our partners Social Value Business, titled ‘Get your value proposition right for the public sector’. You can watch the complete webinar for free.

In this blog, we highlight ten talking points from Chris Farthing (CEO, Advice Cloud & Advice Gov) and Richard Dickins (MD, Social Value Business).

1) What is Social Value?

• There is no universal definition of what social value means: it means different things to different people.
• Rich explained that CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) started in the 1960s, with “oil companies drilling, planting some trees… it was quite responsive”.
• Social Value however “is moving the story on”: a more modern, up-to-date reading of Social Responsibility.

2) Procurement Policy Note 05/21 outlines the following Social Value outcomes:

• Creating new businesses, new jobs and new skills.
• Tackling climate change and reducing waste.
• Improving supplier diversity, innovation and resilience.

3) What buyers want to see:

• Commitment to Carbon Net Zero 2050 – Carbon Reduction plans.
• (Measured) Social Value for your company.
• The benefits and positive changes you can bring to public services.
• Ask yourself: are you delivering cost savings and value for the UK Government?

4) Types of Social Value:

• Apprenticeships help people gain knowledge and skills that they wouldn’t have otherwise.
• Mental health first aiders reduce the need for public sector services, e.g. a GP appointment.
• Rich: “We do not do things in isolation. Tenders are all a part of working with others: how do you deliver the contract? How are you sharing knowledge? How are you creating new approaches and techniques?”

5) The Social Value landscape:

• Manchester are pioneers, giving Social Value 30% weighting in their tenders.
• There can now be incentives for achieving Social Value outcomes, and ‘penalties’ for not achieving.
• Value alignment is key: there is increasingly more awareness about the importance of social responsibility and environmental concerns in procurement.

6) The next steps:

• It is no longer good enough to discuss great things you’ve done in the past: it is now more important to explain what you are going to do in the future.
• Every claim needs to be measurable: you will need to quantify changes for communities and local businesses as a result of you delivering a contract.

7) Social Value examples:

• Suppliers can impact on more areas than employment and training alone. IT providers, for example, can protect public sector organisations from cyber attacks, which can impact on crime.
• It is also worth thinking about recruitment, in terms of gender and race parity, for example. As a supplier, what are you doing to ensure that the supply chain is diverse and inclusive?

8) What does Social Value mean for suppliers?

• It can improve your ability to develop and retain staff.
• It can increase customer loyalty and advocacy.
• Sharing values with the public sector and working closely with them can lead to more business.

9) Top tips:

• Get your marketing and sales teams on board with public sector demands.
• Demonstrate your value proposition on public materials, and in training staff.
• Keep up to date with new frameworks – there are lots coming out in the next 12 months!
• Ask for help if you need it.

10) How can our partnership help?

• Enhance the impact your work has on employees, communities and the planet.
• Guidance on structured routes to accreditation.
• Enable your procurement: get listed on valuable frameworks and DPS’.
• Make sure you can use procurement as a tool to demonstrate your positive impacts.
• Access to our teams of procurement, framework and social value specialists and experts, including framework listing, bid review and Buyability™ review services.

With Advice Cloud and SVB’s joint support, we can make sure that your organisation’s strategy is fit for the public sector. This means buyable, sustainable, and making a difference.