Common Social Value Mistakes That Cost You Marks
6 min readBy Kim FraterPublished 2026-07-27
“I believe public procurement shouldn’t be complicated. Every guide I write explains the process in plain English so you can bid with confidence.”
Hi, I'm Kim. If you're new to public procurement, don't worry, this guide will walk you through everything you need to know in plain English.
Many businesses assume that because they already do good things in their community, they'll naturally score well for social value.
Unfortunately, that's not always the case.
Over the years I've seen organisations lose valuable marks, not because they lacked social value, but because they failed to explain it in a way that buyers could evaluate.
Social value is assessed just like every other part of a tender. Buyers can only award marks for what you've written, not for what they assume you mean.
In this guide, I'll look at some of the most common mistakes I've seen in social value responses and explain how you can avoid them.
Mistake 1: Using the Same Response for Every Tender
This is probably the most common mistake.
Many businesses develop a standard social value response and submit it with every bid.
While it may save time, it's unlikely to achieve the best score.
Every buyer has different priorities.
One organisation may focus on creating local employment, while another places greater emphasis on reducing carbon emissions or supporting local voluntary groups.
A generic response tells the buyer very little about how you'll support their objectives.
What to do instead
Read the tender documents carefully and identify the buyer's priorities before writing your response.
Tailor your commitments so they are relevant to both the contract and the community it will serve.
Mistake 2: Making Vague Statements
Buyers regularly see statements such as:
"We are committed to supporting the local community."
Or:
"We care about sustainability."
These statements may be true, but they don't explain what you'll actually do.
Evaluators need evidence and detail.
What to do instead
Be specific.
Instead of saying you'll support local employment, explain:
- how many local people you'll recruit
- when recruitment will take place
- how vacancies will be advertised
- how you'll measure success
The more clearly you explain your commitment, the easier it is for the buyer to award marks.
Mistake 3: Making Promises You Can't Deliver
It's easy to become carried away when writing a tender.
Businesses sometimes promise dozens of initiatives because they believe more commitments will lead to a higher score.
In reality, unrealistic promises often undermine credibility.
Remember, if you're awarded the contract, buyers may expect you to deliver everything you've committed to.
What to do instead
Only promise what your organisation can realistically achieve.
A small number of achievable commitments will almost always be stronger than an ambitious wish list.
Mistake 4: Forgetting the Local Community
Many public sector contracts exist to deliver benefits within a specific geographical area.
A social value commitment that has no connection to that area may have little impact on your score.
For example, sponsoring a charity on the other side of the country may be worthwhile, but it doesn't necessarily demonstrate value for the community receiving the service.
What to do instead
Whenever possible, explain how your commitments will directly benefit local residents, businesses, schools or community organisations.
Mistake 5: Focusing Only on the Environment
When people hear the words "social value", many immediately think about recycling, electric vehicles or tree planting.
Environmental sustainability is certainly important, but it's only one part of social value.
Buyers are often equally interested in:
- employment
- apprenticeships
- education
- equality, diversity and inclusion
- community engagement
- health and wellbeing
- support for local businesses
What to do instead
Think broadly.
Consider how your organisation can create social, economic and environmental benefits.
The strongest responses usually include a balanced mix of commitments.
Mistake 6: Not Providing Any Evidence
One of the biggest differences between an average response and an excellent one is evidence.
If you simply say you'll deliver apprenticeships or support local suppliers, the buyer has no way of knowing whether you've done it before.
What to do instead
Where possible, include examples from existing contracts.
Explain what you achieved and the difference it made.
Evidence helps demonstrate that your commitments are realistic rather than aspirational.
Mistake 7: Ignoring Measurement
Imagine two responses.
The first says:
"We'll support local employment."
The second says:
"We'll recruit at least three employees from within the local authority area and report progress quarterly through our contract review meetings."
Which one gives the buyer more confidence?
Measurement matters because it demonstrates accountability.
What to do instead
Think about how you'll monitor each commitment.
Could you report:
- numbers recruited?
- volunteer hours?
- carbon savings?
- local spend?
- apprenticeships completed?
If you can measure it, it shows you can manage it.
Mistake 8: Treating Social Value as an Afterthought
I've seen businesses spend days writing technical responses and then leave social value until the final hour before submission.
That rarely produces the best result.
Social value often contributes a meaningful percentage of the overall evaluation score.
If it's worth 10% or 20% of the marks, it deserves the same attention as every other quality question.
What to do instead
Plan your social value response from the beginning.
Give yourself enough time to identify meaningful commitments, gather evidence and tailor your response.
Mistake 9: Forgetting to Explain the Benefit
Some responses describe activities but never explain why they matter.
For example:
"We'll provide work experience."
That's positive, but why?
Who benefits?
What outcomes will it create?
What to do instead
Every commitment should answer three questions:
- What will you do?
- Who benefits?
- Why does it matter?
Helping the evaluator understand the impact of your commitment makes your response much stronger, don’t leave them to guess.
Mistake 10: Assuming the Buyer Will Join the Dots
This is one of the easiest mistakes to make.
You know your business.
The buyer doesn't.
Never assume they'll automatically understand why an initiative is valuable.
Spell it out.
If using local suppliers strengthens the local economy, say so.
If apprenticeships help address skills shortages, explain that.
If switching to low-emission vehicles reduces pollution around schools or public buildings, tell the evaluator why that matters.
The easier you make it for the evaluator to see the benefit, the easier it becomes for them to justify awarding marks.
A Simple Checklist Before You Submit
Before submitting your social value response, ask yourself:
- Have I tailored this response to the buyer?
- Are my commitments relevant to the contract?
- Have I explained exactly what we'll deliver?
- Have I included evidence where possible?
- Can we genuinely deliver everything we've promised?
- Have I explained the benefit of each commitment?
- Have I explained how success will be measured?
If you can answer "yes" to each of those questions, you're giving yourself a much stronger chance of achieving a good score.
My Final Thoughts
Most businesses don't lose marks because they lack social value.
They lose marks because they don't explain it clearly enough.
A well-written social value response isn't about making the biggest promises or using impressive language. It's about helping the buyer understand exactly what you'll deliver, why it matters and how you'll ensure those commitments become reality.
By avoiding the common mistakes in this guide and focusing on relevance, evidence and measurable outcomes, you'll give evaluators far more confidence in your ability to deliver meaningful social value throughout the contract.
Thanks for reading.
I hope this guide has made public procurement a little easier to understand.
Kim Frater
Founder, Bid Trawler
Related guides