Illustrative photo.
Social value can decide a retrofit tender. This guide sets out the legal basis in England, what councils and housing providers can ask a retrofit contractor for, and how to measure it so commitments are delivered, not just written down.
The legal basis for social value in England
Three pieces of law and policy matter for councils and other local authorities, and for housing providers that buy as contracting authorities.
The Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012. Before procuring a services contract above the thresholds, a contracting authority must consider how what it buys might improve the economic, social and environmental well-being of its area, how the procurement could secure that improvement, and whether to consult on it (section 1 of the Act). It is a duty to consider, not a duty to score, and it covers services only. The Cabinet Office's PPN 003 says contracts for works alone are not covered, nor are mixed contracts where the works are more than incidental. Retrofit installation is often mainly works, so check which side of the line your contract falls.
The Procurement Act 2023. In force since 24 February 2025, it requires a contracting authority carrying out a covered procurement to have regard to the importance of delivering value for money and of maximising public benefit (section 12). That applies to works contracts as well as services.
The National Procurement Policy Statement. Under section 13 of the Act, contracting authorities must have regard to the National Procurement Policy Statement, which took effect the same day. It applies to councils in England, with exceptions such as contracts awarded under a framework. Its priorities include social and economic value, high quality jobs with fair wages, closing skills gaps, removing barriers for young people and care leavers, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
Housing associations should take advice on whether they are contracting authorities under section 2 of the Act. Either way, they can ask for social value that relates to the work and is proportionate.
The procurement policy notes and who they apply to
Procurement policy notes (PPNs) are Cabinet Office instructions for central government departments, their executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies. They do not bind councils, though both current social value notes say other contracting authorities may follow them.
- PPN 002, first published in February 2025, applies now. In-scope bodies must use its Social Value Model for procurements started on or after 1 October 2025, give social value at least 10% of the total score, and write every commitment into the contract as a term or a key performance indicator (KPI).
- PPN 026, published on 5 August 2026, replaces the model with one built on two outcomes: good jobs and skills. It applies to central government procurements of £1m or more, including VAT, that start on or after 1 January 2027. The minimum weighting is 10% under £5m and 20% at £5m or more, where at least one social value KPI should also be set. Its practitioner guidance was promised for autumn 2026.
For councils and housing providers, your own policy sets the weighting, and PPN 026 is a useful reference when it is next reviewed.
Send us the stock, the measures and the funding route. We will say what we can commit to locally and how we would report it.
What a buyer can ask a retrofit contractor for
PPN 002 describes social value as the additional benefit from the way a supplier works with its staff, suppliers, community or the environment while delivering a contract. Warmer homes are the subject of the contract, so do not score the measures twice. Reasonable asks of any retrofit contractor, sized to the contract:
| Area | What to ask for | Evidence to request |
|---|---|---|
| Local jobs | Roles recruited from the area the programme serves, advertised locally | Job adverts, start dates and home postcode districts, with names removed |
| Skills | Apprenticeships, work placements and training towards recognised qualifications | Apprenticeship agreements, training records and certificates |
| Fair work | Pay above the statutory minimum and fair working conditions on the contract | Pay policy and rates for the contract workforce |
| Local supply chain | Spend with small firms and voluntary, community and social enterprises in the area | A spend report by supplier, backed by invoices |
| Residents | Engagement before, during and after works, in a form residents can use | Letters, event logs and complaints data |
| Carbon and waste | A plan to cut the contractor's own emissions and waste to landfill | A carbon reduction plan and waste transfer records |
PPN 002 also requires local jobs created for a central government contract to be advertised on the government's Find a Job service. A council can ask for the same.
Local hiring in practice: our Leeds and Bath roles
We recruit where the programmes run. We are hiring now for programmes in the Leeds area and around Bath, and every role is on our careers page:
- Leeds area: retrofit installers for social housing estates, preferably based in West Yorkshire, with Wetherby and SWIP system experience; apprentices and labourers who want to learn trades and gain industry recognised certifications; an apprentice plasterer working towards a Level 2 qualification; and internal wall insulation installers with SWIP experience. Start dates run from late 2026 into early 2027.
- Around Bath: internal wall insulation installers, plasterers, pitched roofers, and painters and decorators, mobilising in late 2026 and running into 2027.
Recruiting locally keeps the same people on the same estates week after week. It is also what a buyer should ask any contractor to show: where the workforce will come from, how many roles will be new, and which qualification each apprentice is working towards. Read why we are growing the workforce in this post on hiring skilled trades.
How to measure social value so it is delivered
A commitment that is not in the contract is only a hope. Four steps:
- Set a baseline. For its jobs outcomes, the PPN 002 model asks bidders how many people will work on the contract, counted in roles, not full time equivalents.
- Use standard measures. The PPN 002 model includes jobs created under the contract, apprenticeships at Level 2, 3 and 4+, people-hours of learning, spend with SMEs and VCSEs, community engagement activities, and annual cuts in carbon emissions and waste to landfill. Pick two or three that fit the work.
- Write them in as KPIs. For public contracts over £5m, section 52 of the Procurement Act 2023 requires at least three published KPIs, unless performance could not be assessed that way, and section 71 requires them to be assessed and published at least once every 12 months. Make one of them social value.
- Ask for a monthly return. A short return with the evidence in the table above, reviewed at contract meetings, catches slippage early.
Carbon sits outside PPN 026. Central government uses PPN 006 to require a Carbon Reduction Plan on contracts above £5m a year, a reasonable ask on a large council programme too.
Keep it proportionate: the 2012 Act confines the authority to matters relevant to what it is buying, and section 12(4) of the Procurement Act asks it to consider barriers facing small and medium-sized enterprises. A single flat roof package does not need the reporting of a whole house programme.
What to do next
- Decide which duty applies, services or works, and what your own social value policy says.
- Choose two or three outcomes that fit: local jobs, skills, supply chain, residents or carbon.
- Write the measures, the baseline and the evidence into the contract as KPIs.
- Ask every bidder the same questions so the answers can be compared.
Our company details, certificates and policies are on our supplier information page, and our carbon reduction plan is available on request from the policies page. If you are planning a programme, send us the details; main contractors can start with our sub-contracting page.
- legislation.gov.uk: Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012, section 1 (read 21 October 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk: Procurement Act 2023, section 12 (covered procurement objectives) (read 21 October 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk: Procurement Act 2023, section 13 (national procurement policy statement) (read 21 October 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk: Procurement Act 2023, section 52 (key performance indicators) (read 21 October 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk: Procurement Act 2023, section 71 (assessment of contract performance) (read 21 October 2026)
- Government Commercial Function: National Procurement Policy Statement (read 21 October 2026)
- Cabinet Office: PPN 003, The Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 (read 21 October 2026)
- Cabinet Office: PPN 002, Taking account of social value in the award of contracts (read 21 October 2026)
- Cabinet Office: PPN 026, The Social Value Model (read 21 October 2026)
- Cabinet Office: PPN 006, Taking account of Carbon Reduction Plans in the procurement of major government contracts (read 21 October 2026)
Miles has led retrofit programmes at scale across the UK, with long-standing relationships with local authorities including Kirklees Council, Durham County Council and Ribble Valley Borough Council. He has project-directed programmes for housing associations and delivery partners including Aspire Housing, Sureserve, LivGreen and BroadOak, and for energy suppliers including E.ON Next, Utilita, British Gas and Octopus, and for tier one contractors including UKEM.