The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has today published a guidance toolkit prioritising the delivery of social value across built environment projects
The toolkit guidance aims to empower built environment practitioners to support and enhance the delivery of social value across built environment projects. This will be achieved via a simple and practical 8-step process.
The toolkit guidance cuts to the chase when it comes to social value
The UKGBC‘s guide provides checklists to equip decision-makers with the tools to complete day-to-day tasks whilst ensuring that community and occupant needs are prioritised throughout a project’s lifecycle.
The toolkit guidance cuts to the chase when it comes to social value, offering a shared approach to social value delivery which has been formulated in collaboration with industry experts and informed by real-world case studies.
Each project is unique and therefore the toolkit guidance offers a flexible approach to social value. The guidance can be adapted to support any built environment project of any scale, as well as at an organisational level.
Adding social value to building projects unlocks social, economic and environmental benefits to society
Social value should never be an afterthought when it comes to the sustainability of the built environment: prioritising social value across our building projects has a range of social, economic and environmental benefits for society.
For example, it can help to tackle economic inequality, fight climate change, improve health and wellbeing, and even shield vulnerable people against the rising cost of living.
The Social Value Act 2013 has spearheaded the focus on social value in the built environment
In 2013, the Social Value Act was published, detailing guidance on social value for the built environment sector. This ranged from measurement to embedding social value into procurement, planning and design.
A key issue that the industry needs to address is translating this guidance into a form which can be easily applied to the specific circumstances of stakeholder needs and the nature of individual projects.
The UKGBC’s ‘Guide for Delivering Social Value on Built Environment Projects, has been published today. It seeks to respond to the barriers the industry is currently facing by offering a step-by-step, flexible process for delivering social value that can be applied to any built environment project of any scale. This could range from a single built asset to an entire town regeneration project.
Building on UKGBC’s Framework for Defining Social Value, the guidance toolkit has been developed through testing the process for delivering social value on a range of case studies and then applying the outcome to improve understanding. Alongside an updated 8-step process, it includes:
- supplementary delivery checklists for senior decision-makers to use when leading built environment projects
- detailed guidance notes aimed at practitioners who are responsible for day-to-day project delivery
- best practice examples
The new guidance is simple and manageable for project teams, and aims to ensure that social value is at the forefront of sustainability in the built environment.
‘With our communities in ever more need of support, delivering social value across building projects should no longer be viewed as ‘nice to have’, but a necessity’
UKGBC’s director of communications, policy & places, Simon McWhirter said:
“Whether it’s climate change, rising energy bills or community well-being and safety, the places we live, work and play are at the forefront of many of society’s most critical issues. With our communities in ever more need of support, delivering social value across building projects should no longer be viewed as ‘nice to have’, but a necessity.
“Through setting out a logical process – which has been tried and tested in the real world – this guidance equips those tasked with delivering social value with an easy-to-use toolkit to ensure community and occupant needs are put front and centre as we design and deliver new developments and regeneration projects across the country.”
‘We want to give our staff the best tools to deliver places and spaces’
Avison Young’s community & charity manager, Hannah Baines and corporate responsibility manager, Chris Whetstone said:
“As a business that believes in the positive impact real estate can have, we want to give our staff the best tools to deliver places and spaces that promote environmental, economic and social wellbeing. The UKGBC Social Value Delivery guidance is one of these tools, providing useful support and advice on a complex topic that is increasingly top of mind for clients
“As a UKGBC Gold Leaf member, we were pleased to test the UKGBC Social Value toolkit on a pilot project at Swinton Square Shopping Centre, Salford, working in conjunction with our partners Groundwork and the EU UIA funded Ignition programme. We used our findings to inform this delivery guide, which is an essential tool for anyone keen to maximise the impact of their social value strategy.”
