Achieving social value through construction frameworks: the effect of client attributes

The UK Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 mandates public sector construction clients to prioritise the resolution of social challenges through procurement. Accordingly, clients are increasingly committing to delivering on social value through capital expenditure. Construction frameworks have been identified as a means of delivering social value, hence their relatively sudden attractiveness. Yet evidence suggests clients are experiencing varied social value benefits from projects procured through frameworks. The study reported in this paper sought to ascertain the causes of such inconsistency. It investigated the influence of client attributes on the ability of frameworks to deliver on social value. A qualitative case study design was adopted. Interactions between a regional framework and two clients were studied from a project procurement perspective using a viable infrastructure delivery model. Findings revealed that certain client attributes influenced a framework’s ability to achieve optimal social value. Of significance was the ability of the client to express their latent values and their ability to appoint a project manager who will serve as a social value champion. Findings from this study will enlighten clients on their contributions towards successful social value implementation when engaging with a construction framework.