An exciting approach to a new programme for delivering social value in the healthcare sector was unveiled at a webinar on 16 July 2024.
The new ‘Social Value in Health Programme’ has been borne out of a collaboration between three leading organisations in social value: NHS Arden & GEM CSU, Social Value Quality Mark CIC and Social Value Portal, who offer a best-in-class approach to social value.
Using an integrated approach to planning, measuring and accrediting social value, the programme will help healthcare organisations achieve their social value commitments. It provides an opportunity for organisations to harness skills and knowledge, embed and demonstrate social value, compete for new business, set out requirements from suppliers and partners, and tackle health and other inequalities.
Why social value matters
- It’s the right thing to do. It’s something we know we should all be doing.
- Health organisations must demonstrate social value as part of public sector procurement.
- It brings benefits in terms of workforce wellbeing, sustainability and better health outcomes.
- The new government is introducing measures to increase social value delivery.
The Labour government has committed to policies that will increase social value from sustainability, social justice, community collaboration and social enterprise. These building blocks support community wealth building, worker’s rights, healthcare, education, housing and crime – the social elements of social value.
Economically, there will be new changes to the Procurement Act 2023, ensuring procurement from green and ethical sources with higher environmental standards and a circular economy; how we reinvest and embed reusing things to be more sustainable.
Partnership approach
NHS Arden & GEM has been leading the way with social value by supporting healthcare organisations in a consultancy and advisory role - and through their FutureNHS workspace. They are now partnering with the Social Value Quality Mark and Social Value Portal who share the same ethos. Together, they will support NHS organisations to increase social value understanding, delivery and output which will lead to a more sustainable health service. They are keen to help organisations realise that social value is about long-term savings to make long term changes to public services, making good go further.
By working together, they aim to help advance and embed the social value lifecycle.
Benefits of the programme
The Social Value in Health Programme offers a range of benefits:
- Supports a healthier, happier workforce with clear alignment between social value and your People Plan, driving retention
- Builds deeper engagement and connection with patients and communities
- Helps you stand out as an ethical, socially focussed organisation
- Supports with clearly and credibly reporting on your social value achievements
- Informs your strategic decision making with evidence-based insights
- Provides robust, meaningful evidence in response to social value tender questions
- Helps you compete across sectors with a clear understanding of the difference you make.
Social Value Quality Mark
Based on the established Social Value Quality Mark®, the UK’s national standard for social value, the health accreditation is tailored to the specific needs of the sector. Healthcare organisations can work towards four levels of accreditation.
Bronze – the start of your social value journey where you determine your baseline and make commitments to create, measure and report social value.
Silver – a significant achievement based on 12 months of evidence. At this stage you’ll be benchmarked against similar organisations in the UK and will have a robust strategy.
Gold – recognises true best practice. At this stage, social value informs how you develop and grow as an organisation, setting you apart with your staff, patients and communities.
Platinum – the pinnacle of social value excellence. You’ll be spreading your innovation outwards and influencing policy change for the benefit of society.
A quality mark will be awarded to organisations who pass a full quantitative and qualitative audit evidencing delivery of pledges, key value indicators and how social value has been embedded in their organisation’s culture, processes, policies, strategies and management. The audits at Silver and above include interviews with stakeholders to verify claims.
Measuring social value in £s with Social Value Portal
Partnership with Social Value Portal will help organisations measure and report on their social value providing them with the tools to report on their positive impact on the economy, community and environment, known as the ‘triple bottom line approach’.
Using the Social Value TOM System™, with its robust set of proxy values , Social Value Portal assigns values to each activity and intervention. This is an established and trusted method for recording and reporting on social value and is endorsed by the Local Government Association, is compatible with international sustainability reporting standards and maps to the Government Social Value Model.
If your healthcare organisation wants to find out more about social value, visit our webpage.
Watch the webinar
The ‘Social Value in Health’ webinar is available to view below, together with the slide pack, featuring contributions from:
- Becky Jones, Social Value Specialist, NHS Arden & GEM CSU
- Richard Dickins, MD and Founder, Social Value Quality Mark CIC
- Sol Tannir, Strategic Account Manager, Social Value Portal.
Click here to download the slides.
You can view the webinar recording below:
Join the Social Value FutureNHS workspace here.