The way that the public sector allocates resources has a huge impact on society, the economy, and the environment.
Our goal is to shift the debate from how best to manage and control costs, to how best to maximise social value from within existing resources. By ‘social value’ we refer to the overall value of the changes that public spending brings to our communities and society.
Our proposition is a simple one; that ‘social value’ can be maximised at each stage of the commissioning cycle, typically at no additional cost. This can be achieved simply by understanding what communities’ value, specifying services and procuring them in a slightly different way, and in doing so deepening relationships with Third Sector suppliers.
That’s why we’re working with partners to deliver the Scottish Government’s Developing Markets for Third Sector Providers programme. This programme supports public sector commissioners and buyers through supporting the introduction of new and improved practices (e.g. the use of Community Benefit Clauses in Procurement, Public Social Partnership projects, Social Value Measurement tools).
You can find out more about the Developing Markets for Third Sector Providers programme at www.readyforbusiness.org.
