Delivering effective social value

Delivering effective social value

Whether we call it social value, CSR, legacy, ESG, sustainability or give it any other label, we all recognise that any large investment has the potential to give back more broadly to society, and leave a lasting legacy.

Not only is there potential, but there is also growing momentum from clients across most projects, as a decade of evolution since the launch of the 2012 Act has seen increasing expectations and a desire to contribute more effectively.

But that landscape change has also added complexity, so we are here to help.

At Copper we have extensive experience gained from years of working with stakeholder communities, client, consultants and contractor partners to develop, deliver, report and communicate effective social value.

Sharing insight and expertise

A decade on from the inception of the Social Value Act in 2012, we invited a panel of major client and contractor partners to reflect on the changing shape of social value over its ten year journey, in a series of 4 podcasts.

We’re joined by:

  • Liz Holford, Sustainability Strategy Manager at Network Rail
  • Luke Richardson, Head of Social Impact for Programme and Partner Projects at Sellafield
  • Rachael Land, Group Social Value Manager at Buckingham Group
  • Heidi Salmons, Head of Marketing, Communications and Social Responsibility at Winvic
  • Emma Ward, Head of Sustainability and Inclusion at VolkerWessels UK

This first podcast episode in the series will explore how we label and define social value, given how diverse definitions and expectations have become, to help unlock shared understanding across the built environment.

The next will be exploring the cost and benefits of social value, discussing the evolution of embedding social value from project inception to delivery and beyond, and how to best communicate the benefits of social value to local communities and key stakeholders.

Copper’s Social Value Insight Report

To break down knowledge barriers we recently took a pulse check from practitioners, surveying respondents in the social value space to understand more about the journey we have been on, and the challenges and opportunities that face us.

How we can help…

Wherever you are in your social value journey we can help…

Research and insight – using our Communify platform and a range of other tools to build understanding of the needs of particular communities and demographics

Shaping a strategy – using this kind of insight to help you tailor a relevant and impactful social value strategy that will deliver a lasting legacy and meet diverse client needs

Informing bid questions and responses – using this kind of insight led strategic thinking to maximise the social value potential of a project/maximise bid scores

Delivering individual activities and events – top up resource to help you with day to day activity and delivery across the UK with local resource

Monitoring, recording, reporting and evaluating – helping you navigate diverse measurement platforms to record, report, celebrate success and inform future work

Awards and accreditations – helping you with profile and recognition in defining opportunities, helping with submissions and socialising success in the industry

Training and upskilling – helping you with one-off knowledge sharing workshops through to full programmes and refresher spot check support.

Laing O’Rourke and J. Murphy & Sons (LMJV)

We helped HS2 and LMJV execute a tailored engagement strategy that delivered social value to showcase them as a considerate construction partner

Towns Fund Delivery Partner (TFDP)

We supported TFDP in measuring success and developing a social value guidance note for application in Town Investment Plans

West Midlands Interchange

We are helping to deliver meaningful engagement and social value to convey project benefits to local communities and lay the foundation for successful construction

Related Case Studies

Unity and HS2 Interchange

Creating a website and collateral to support Unity Joint Venture's bid for HS2 Interchange

Read the full case study

Towns Fund

The Towns Fund is at the heart of the government’s ambition to levelling up places which have historically lacked investment and opportunity.

Read the full case study

West Midlands Interchange

The West Midlands Interchange (WMI) is a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) located at Four Ashes in South Staffordshire.

Read the full case study

Let's chat

For an informal chat, get in touch with one of our construction social value leads to find out how we can help you at any stage of your social value journey…

Caroline Romback

Director – Construction

Georgina Bass

Associate Director

Allan Fatah

Account Director

William Mendoza

Senior Account Manager