Social Value
Social value is the wider benefit that a church provides to people, communities and society beyond its financial value. This can be particularly useful when filling in grant applications as it helps to quantify the benefits of the church's mission and assists with decision-making.
For churches, social value is about more than the building itself. It includes the positive impact a church has on individuals, local communities and the wider environment through its worship, mission, activities, services and facilities. Examples of social value provided by churches may include:
- Supporting mental health and wellbeing
- Providing warm spaces, food banks and community cafés
- Hosting youth groups, parent and toddler groups and lunch clubs
- Reducing loneliness and social isolation
- Supporting volunteers and community action
- Providing space for local organisations and services
- Preserving heritage and community assets
- Caring for church grounds and local biodiversity
National Churches Trust (NCT) have spearheaded research that measures the value of the activities and essential services provided by churches. Their House of Good research is based on the HM Green Book Treasury Methodology, which is a framework for developing evidence-based, objective and impartial advice for decision-makers. In their House of Good Report, the NCT calculated that £55 billion of social value is enabled by UK churches every year.
Click here to read the House of Good Report.
NCT have also created a free online social value calculator called The House of Good: Local, which should take under 30 minutes to capture and showcase the social value for your church.
Using Social Value in Grant Applications
Many grant funders want to understand the difference a project will make to the community, not just the work being carried out. However, social value can help explain why the building matters and why investment is justified. By combining technical evidence, such as an energy audit, with social value evidence, churches can present a stronger case for funding.
When preparing a grant application, churches should consider:
- Who benefits from the building?
- How many people use it each week?
- What community activities take place there?
- What would be lost if the building became unusable?
- How would the proposed project help sustain or expand this work?
Social value helps churches tell the fuller story of the impact their buildings have on people, communities and the environment. By combining social value evidence with technical information, churches can make stronger funding applications, develop more sustainable buildings and demonstrate the importance of their mission and ministry within their communities.
Using Social Value as part of the Trustees Annual Report
Social value can help churches demonstrate their public benefit and wider impact on the communities they serve. As charity reporting increasingly places greater emphasis on environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations, social value provides a practical way to evidence the outcomes of mission, community engagement and environmental stewardship.
Information gathered to support social value assessments can be used within the Trustees' Annual Report to demonstrate how the church is delivering its charitable objectives through activities such as volunteering, community outreach, wellbeing initiatives, support services and environmental action.
Click here for more information on annual reporting.
Using Social Value to Support Growth Planning
Social value can help churches better understand and communicate the difference they make in their communities. By identifying who benefits from church activities and the outcomes being achieved, churches can build a clearer picture of their mission and community impact.
This information can support the development of growth plans by highlighting existing strengths, identifying unmet community needs and helping churches focus resources where they can have the greatest impact. It can also provide evidence to support conversations with partners, local authorities and funding organisations when developing future projects and initiatives.
Click here for more information on mission planning.
Using Social Value for Circuit Review and Mission Planning
Social value can provide an additional lens when considering major decisions about buildings, investment and future priorities. Alongside financial information, it can help churches assess how decisions may affect community benefit, mission delivery, volunteer engagement and environmental outcomes.
By considering both financial and social value, churches can make more informed decisions that reflect not only cost, but also the wider contribution their buildings and activities make to local communities.