How Bouygues UK is embedding Social Value in its business

At Bouygues UK, we define Social Value as the activities we do that enhance people’s lives and the communities within which we work. This means improving the conditions of the wider community by reducing inequality, boosting wellbeing and inclusion, and creating prosperity for all, whilst delivering against the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The term Social Value is now more widely used than ever before in the UK, despite there being no commonly accepted definition of what it means. In Wales, it is more widely regarded as 'community benefits' and is supported with The Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015.

A great team

Social Value means many things to different people, and businesses therefore approach it in a range of different ways. We are fortunate in Bouygues UK to have a great team of people who are motivated by challenge and genuine passion for applying their knowledge, skills, and experience to make a difference.

To our staff, Social Value simply means a company with a good moral compass. That's why Social Value is one of three pillars which underpin our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy, the other two being Environment and Economic.

CSR is a strategic priority for Bouygues Construction in the UK. We recognise that a strong commitment to CSR is required by our clients, partners, and supply chains, and is also rightly expected by our employees.

Our mission is to deliver a sustainable built environment that creates a better life for members of our communities. This concept addresses many and various topics, such as human rights, corporate governance, ethical business practices, health and safety, environmental effects, working conditions, and contribution to economic development.

Leading the way

A strong CSR policy forms the foundation of a successful business. In an increasingly competitive market, the ethos, ethics and values of a company are what makes it stand out - what makes it a company that prospective employees want to join and that intelligent clients want to work with.

During the global pandemic, Social Value was even more so at the forefront of people’s minds. During this period, we shifted our focus toward supporting those in most need and in ways that delivered the maximum benefit. These included donating PPE to health care workers, and to Welsh homelessness charity Llamau to help its staff and those it supports protect themselves from COVID-19. We also targeted our activities towards those social groups which were disproportionately affected, such as young people with few or no qualifications.

Community support

The communities that we live and work in need businesses to consciously create Social Value now more than ever.

As a business we need to be truly responsible – from the leadership to the business plan; from our culture and the way we behave, to the way we measure our impact.​

We must ensure that our impact is as positive as possible, while also driving and challenging our thinking as business leaders to do things differently, bravely, and responsibly.

Last year we developed a partnership with Social Value Portal. In line with the new Bouygues Construction in the UK CSR Policy, we have developed a standard method of measurement of Social Value across ALL Bouygues UK projects with Bouygues-specific Themes, Outcomes, and Measures and a standard reporting dashboard.