Two in three councils failing to embrace Social Value Act

Two in three councils across England are failing to embrace the Social Value Act and consider social value in their procurement and commissioning, according to Social Enterprise UK.

A series of Freedom of Information requests also unveiled that only 24 per cent have a social value policy, with district councils found less likely to integrate social value commissioning and procurement, despite guidance from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) which encourages them to do so.

The ‘Procuring for Good’ report categorised local authorities into four categories – embracers, adopters, compliers and bystanders, dependent on the existence of a social value policy, the scope of contracts to which they apply social value, and how social value is implemented.

45 per cent of councils were found to ‘comply’ with the Social Value Act, with one 19 per cent categorised as ‘adopters’.

14 per cent found to fully embrace social value by frequently applying it to contracts, including those below the threshold of €209,000, but 22 per cent were categorised as ‘bystanders’ who operate without a social value policy.

Peter Holbrook, chief executive of Social Enterprise UK said: “This research shows that where the will exists, councils in England are using the Act to embed social value into the way they commission services - in many cases going beyond its obligations to create positive change in their communities. This is a credit to the procurement and commissioning teams driving this agenda, they are unsung heroes.

“Sadly too few councils still see the Act as a duty rather than an opportunity. The Act has been in force for more than three years but is not empowering local authorities in the way it could be, to the detriment of our communities. Legislative change is needed - the Act lacks teeth and simply asking public sector bodies to consider the creation of social value when commissioning services is not enough.”