A collective of construction industry heavyweights are set to enhance the amount of social value delivered through public sector construction projects having committed to a new collaborative agreement.
Nine of the UK’s leading national construction, consultancy and civil engineering contractors, including, Kier, Willmott Dixon, Mace, Sisk, McLaughlin & Harvey, Graham, Perfect Circle, Balfour Beatty and Morgan Sindall Construction have pledged to boost local communities by signing SCAPE’s Community Legacy Mission Statement, which will ensure social value generation and lasting legacies for public sector construction projects, across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The partners have committed to supporting local supply chains, increasing employment and training opportunities, and promoting STEM in schools to inspire the next generation of industry experts. This is alongside driving environmental sustainability as part of all projects delivered through SCAPE’s procurement frameworks.
Through the SCAPE Community Legacy Programme, delivery partners have the opportunity to participate in the SCAPE Legacy Challenge — a nine-month collaborative programme which will see a project team propose and test new solutions to improve social value across the industry. Other collaborative initiatives include a virtual work experience programme and a model to engage local students studying media courses to produce short videos that demonstrate the social value being created in the community.
The benefits created by the programme will be measured using the National Themes, Outcomes and Measures framework, developed by the National Social Value Taskforce, of which SCAPE is a founding member.
Alison Ramsey, Social Value and Performance Manager at SCAPE, said: “As one of the most influential sectors within the UK economy, it’s critical that the construction industry is driving community regeneration and maximising the impact of taxpayer income. Our research, delivered in partnership with the Social Value Portal, has highlighted tangible growth in the amount of social value being created year-on-year since the pandemic. However, as local authorities continue to manage the effects of inflation, it’s imperative that they draw on the support of experienced contractors that are committed to social value and using building projects to improve lives.
“It’s extremely encouraging to see the enthusiasm with which our partners are working together to create and deliver collaborative initiatives and we’re looking forward to seeing the real-life benefits it brings to local communities.”
The scheme follows the success of the SCAPE Scotland Community Legacy Charter which was launched just last year and has since seen a comprehensive programme of initiatives in local communities delivered, including supporting the delivery of Carbon Literacy training.
