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Maximising Social Value from Infrastructure

ICE talk SCAPE and BB 24 10 2019

Issued: 15/07/2020

Updated: 16/06/2021

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The latest research shines a light on the missed opportunities for social value across the infrastructure sector.

The research, which was co-funded by the Institution of Civil Engineers and Useful Projects, outlines an array of actionable recommendations to ensure infrastructure projects embed social value and deliver wide-ranging socio-economic benefits.

Within this report, authors Judith Sykes and Jo Dobson offer observations and suggestions which include:

  • How greater ambition and creativity can maximise social value beyond apprenticeships and SME involvement in the supply chain.
  • Why it's important to plug implementation gaps that could result in opportunities for social value capture to be lost throughout the project lifecycle.
  • The importance of a consistent approach to measurement definitions, measurement methods and organisational approach.
  • How the vast budgetary and geographical scale of infrastructure projects can deliver greater social value.

Our partnership with Balfour Beatty through the National Civil Engineering frameworks is featured in the report.

It highlights our commitment to include social impact from framework inception and how early contractor involvement (ECI) allows you to explore and plan your social value targets; and define a road map to achieve them.

Social value has long been a key part of infrastructure projects but will assume an even more crucial role as the sector works towards its sustainability goals and society emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mark Hansford, ICE Director of Engineering Knowledge