Calculating the social value from our work

Social value is the sum of the various benefits to society that arise from the environmental, economic and social impacts of any organisation. Some, but not all, of that value can be captured in market prices. Understanding the relative importance people in the community place on changes to their lives is more difficult. We need to be able to calculate this accurately and consistently to inform our decision-making and our stakeholders – customers, shareholders, employees and partners.

Social Profit Calculator (SPC) was founded, and developed its eponymous analytical tool, in response to the Social Value Act 2012. More advanced than other options and most relevant for the needs of a national company with multiple locations and stakeholders, this calculator is accredited by Social Value UK and Social Value International, the professional bodies for social value and impact management.

 

Working with Social Profit Calculator, we created a bespoke platform for analysing our impacts in depth. The tool is able to provide a comprehensive assessment of the social value we are creating – from the wellbeing that derives from services and activities in the community to the true fiscal benefits of our operations to UK plc.

 

This partnership resulted in Social Profit Calculator’s most advanced platform to date, designed to understand our social value in great detail and with a high level of confidence across our diverse activities.

Despite the sophistication of its analysis, our bespoke platform makes the tool easy to use. We can now understand and demonstrate the social value created at the level of a local community or individual project, as well as company-wide.

 

We calculated that in 2019, for every £1 we spent, SUEZ generated £2.11 in social value. This reflects the amount of materials we recycled over the 12 months and the economic benefits generated in the Greater Manchester area following the award of operating contracts and the transfer of staff in June 2019. As we seek to improve our impact, we are confident this will increase over time.

 

The Social Profit Calculator tool informs the social value commitments we make to our clients and is guiding decision-making across the business.

The diverse activities that generate social value – from local employment and procurement to shrinking customers’ carbon footprint and supporting schools – contribute to SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals).