Social Value can make Greater Manchester a better place

A Greener, Fairer and More Prosperous Greater Manchester - The Greater Manchester Social Value Framework 2022

Addressing inequality can be everyone’s business. Now is the time to take action.

Building on Greater Manchester’s position at the vanguard of delivery on Social Value, this Framework seeks to use that foundation of best practice and learning to create a groundswell of collaborative action across the city region.

In Greater Manchester we will look to use social value to tackle the inequalities around us and make the things that we do, good, fair and sustainable. We will encourage every organisation in Greater Manchester to carry out its primary activity, managing the resources that it controls and drawing in investment, in such a way that it encourages them to create lasting benefits for the people of GM, improve the local economy, whilst positively contributing (or at least minimising damage) to the environment.

Achieving positive change through social value should be part of all ‘business’, so we have broadened the scope of our ground-breaking 2014 GM Social Value Policy to create a Framework that can be used across all sectors to guide actions and maximise impact for Greater Manchester and its citizens, and clustered this around the commitments made in our Greater Manchester Strategy.

The Framework is built around the following three areas, and aims to guide and support the work of your organisation to create social, environmental and economic benefit:

The Framework can be used in many different ways:

• As a talking point in corporate or business planning…
• As a checklist for the commissioning of services…
• As a guide for the development of procurement strategies and social value policies…
• For discussion in a team meeting….
• As a framework for your social impact reporting….
• And to take action….

If all businesses, community groups, social enterprises, voluntary and public sector organisations take at least one new action against one of these areas, together we can make a huge difference for Greater Manchester.

Social Value is increasingly a requirement for organisations bidding for public sector contracts and the procurement arrangements used across Greater Manchester will use this Framework as their guide.

Why not join the Greater Manchester Social Value Network to hear what others are doing, discuss your ideas and be part of a movement for change.

Our aim

Our aim is that taking action on ‘social value’ becomes the right way to run an organisation in Greater Manchester – for private business, for voluntary organisations, community groups and social enterprises (VCSE) and also for the public sector. If you provide employment, it should be good employment; if you use resources – think about their sources and sustainability; if you buy goods and services – could they be from local suppliers?

Together, we can tackle the widening inequalities that we have seen post Covid-19, and build back a better, fairer and greener economy in Greater Manchester.

Developed by a group of partners from VCSE, public and business organisations from across Greater Manchester, our Social Value Framework contains a set of specific and action-oriented priorities that can be used by any organisation.

Social Value Checklist

We have written a checklist to help you plan how you can maximise social value in your business, your community group, your organisation, and take part in making Greater Manchester a better place.

Greater Manchester Social Value Framework Taking Action Checklist (Word, 52KB)
This document is partially accessible. We have published it this way for users to download and adapt it to their needs.

Where to start…Focus on areas that really fit with your company’s values and involve your employees in deciding your priorities.

Social Value Reporting Tool

We have also put together a simple template for developing a map of the social value that you create in your business, community group, or organisation.

Greater Manchester Social Value Framework Reporting Tool (Word, 63KB)
This document is partially accessible. We have published it this way for users to download and adapt it to their needs.

Greater Manchester Social Value Network

Get involved in the Greater Manchester Social Value Network, which:

• Collects information, evidence and examples of social value from across Greater Manchester
• Supports organisations across all sectors to deliver more effective social value policy, practice and outcomes
• Uses the skills knowledge and experience of the group to influence the behaviour of the range of individuals and organisations with a stake in social value