How to write a strong social value bid under PPN 026

A strong social value response under PPN 026 explains what you will deliver through the contract, who will benefit and how you will make it happen. It gives the buyer enough detail to judge whether the offer is relevant, achievable and properly supported.

Much of that work happens before you write. Speaking to an employment service, checking supervisor capacity or agreeing a training budget can improve a proposal far more than another round of editing.

This Social Value Engine guide sets out how we recommend preparing a social value tender response, drawing on the October 2026 Cabinet Office Social Value Model guidance. Policy references were checked on 30 October 2026 against the guidance updated on 28 October 2026.

What PPN 026 means for suppliers writing bids

PPN 026 applies to new, in-scope central government procurements from 1 January 2027. It focuses on Good Jobs and Skills. The minimum social value weighting is 10% for contracts from £1 million to below £5 million, and 20% from £5 million, subject to scope and the relevant public contract thresholds. Values include VAT. Under absolute evaluation methods, these percentages apply to the non-price criteria. Earlier frameworks can use previous models.

The practitioner guidance generally requires qualitative assessment of the method statement and implementation plan. Quantities become contract commitments; Annex A permits limited exceptions. Follow the tender's published requirements and scoring method.

For the wider policy detail, read our PPN 026 guidance for buyers and suppliers. For the preceding model and transitional context, see our guide to PPN 002 and the Social Value Model.

Start with the tender question and evaluation criteria

Before drafting, turn the question into a working checklist. Record every part you need to address, the selected criteria and sub-criteria, the response limit and any required attachments.

Use that checklist to allocate space. If participant support is explicitly assessed, give it a clear explanation. An evaluator should be able to find the answer without piecing it together from several paragraphs.

Keep corporate background brief. A general account of your volunteering programme gives the buyer little help in understanding what you propose for this contract. Explain the proposed commitment first, then use relevant experience to support its credibility.

Explain why your proposed activity will help

Choose an offer you can explain and defend. What opportunity does the contract create? Who could benefit? What makes the activity appropriate for them?

Local data can help you identify an issue, but you still need to make the connection to your proposal. A high unemployment rate does not, by itself, explain why a particular training course would be useful. Look at employer demand, entry requirements and the barriers facing the people you hope to reach.

For a digital services contract, for example, introductory training might be useful if participants can progress into accessible entry-level roles. If every available role requires qualifications they cannot obtain through the programme, the proposed pathway needs more thought.

Use a small number of relevant sources. Explain what they tell you and how they influenced your decision. Avoid filling the response with statistics that never affect the offer.

A Theory of Change can help you explain the connection between the activity, the people it reaches and the changes you expect.

Speak to employment services and delivery partners early

Contact organisations that understand the people you hope to support while there is still time to shape the proposal. Depending on the activity, these could include colleges, employment services, supported employment providers or community organisations.

Go into the conversation with practical questions:

• Is there demand for this opportunity among the people you support?
• What would make it accessible and worthwhile?
• How would referrals work, and who would handle them?
• What support could you provide, at what cost and within what capacity?
• What could we realistically agree before the submission deadline?

Their answers may change the proposal. A placement could need different hours, travel support or a more gradual introduction to the workplace. Establishing that early helps you write an informed delivery plan.

Be precise about the relationship. Naming an organisation in a bid does not establish its agreement to deliver. Distinguish confirmed arrangements from discussions and future actions.

Show how people will access and benefit from the opportunity

The model question addresses targeting, engagement, participant support and progression. It also asks for measurable commitments, implementation arrangements and transparency. See section 4.1 of the guidance.

Our advice is to write the plan from the participant's perspective. How will someone hear about the opportunity? What happens when they express interest? Who helps if they encounter a problem?

Consider whether your recruitment process creates avoidable barriers. An application form requiring previous work experience may exclude the very people a first-work-experience programme is intended to support.

Then explain what makes participation useful. For a placement, that might mean defined tasks, a trained supervisor, regular feedback and an opportunity to discuss future roles. For workforce training, it could mean time to learn and a clear connection to progression.

For practical measurement examples, read how to measure jobs and skills social value.

Build a delivery plan and budget that support the promise

Before committing to a target, ask the people responsible for delivery to test it. Can they accommodate the proposed activity alongside their other responsibilities? Have the necessary costs and dependencies been considered?

Cost staff time as well as purchases. Mentoring needs mentors with time available. Placements need supervision. Training may involve paid learning time, equipment, travel or specialist support.

Use the same assumptions across the response, budget and project plan. If the narrative promises monthly mentoring, the plan should schedule it and the budget should provide for the time involved.

Set out who owns each commitment, the main milestones and what you will do if an important dependency fails. A credible contingency might be an alternative referral route or a revised recruitment approach. Simply increasing the target will not resolve a capacity problem.

Be clear about what winning this contract adds

The guidance allows expansion of existing activity where the contract causes that expansion. The offer must be additional to the core contract. Explain the baseline and the proposed change. See section 4.3 of the guidance.

For example, a supplier might already run an annual training programme. Its response should distinguish the existing programme from any extra places, support or delivery capacity enabled by the proposed contract.

That explanation also helps colleagues avoid allocating the same promised activity to several bids. Keep a record of which commitments depend on which awards, especially when delivery relies on a shared team or partner.

Decide how you will evidence delivery before submitting

For each commitment, decide what information would demonstrate progress and who will collect it. Test whether the proposed evidence supports the claim you are making.

An attendance record can support a statement about training participation. Evidence of a qualification or a subsequent job needs a different source. Keep promised activities separate from the longer-term changes you hope they will help achieve.

Where a partner holds the underlying records, discuss how appropriate confirmation can be shared. A promise to provide evidence later is less convincing if nobody has checked whether it can actually be obtained.

Relevant past results can support your proposed method. Explain what you learned and how it informs this bid, checking permission before using client-specific material.

Our guides to evidencing social value in public sector bids and writing a good social value KPI cover evidence planning and measurable commitments in more detail.

An example of a stronger social value response

The following is an illustrative extract, not a complete model answer. Its details should only appear in a real bid where they are accurate and agreed.

An undeveloped commitment

We will provide six work placements for young people facing barriers to employment.

A more developed proposal

During the first contract year, we will provide six paid, four-week placements in the contract's service desk team for local 18–24-year-olds who are not in employment, education or training. The placements are additional to our existing programme.

Our employment partner has confirmed referral capacity. The service desk manager has allocated a trained supervisor and weekly feedback time for each participant. We have budgeted for wages, supervision and travel support. Recruitment will begin in month two, with placements delivered in two groups of three.

Each participant will agree a learning plan and receive an exit discussion, a reference and support to identify suitable vacancies or further training. We will record starts, completions and feedback, and offer a follow-up discussion after three months.

The second extract gives the evaluator more to assess. Each statement can also be checked against the budget, partner arrangements and delivery plan. It would still need tailoring to the actual tender and its full requirements.

Review the response before you submit

Ask a colleague who was not involved in drafting to read the question and your answer together. Can they find:

• A direct answer to every assessed part of the question?
• A clear explanation of why the proposal suits the contract and intended beneficiaries?
• Specific targets, dates, responsibilities and delivery arrangements?
• A consistent budget and project plan?
• An honest account of partner involvement and unresolved dependencies?
• Evidence arrangements that support the proposed claims?

Use their questions to find gaps. If delivery still depends on an uncosted activity or an unconfirmed organisation, resolve that issue before polishing the wording.

Keep the bid connected to delivery

Once submitted, keep the final response, budget and project plan together. If you win, compare those documents with the agreed contract before mobilisation so the delivery team understands the accepted commitments.

SVE Delivery helps suppliers manage social value bids, commitments, targets and supporting evidence across contracts. It also helps teams use place data and local needs to inform their bids. Explore our social value procurement approach for the wider connection between procurement and contract reporting.

To see how SVE Delivery can support your next PPN 026 response and the commitments that follow, book a demonstration with the team.

Sources and policy context

This is practical bid-preparation advice from Social Value Engine. The tender documents and the buyer's published evaluation method determine what your response must address.

• Cabinet Office: PPN 026, The Social Value Model.
• PPN 026 policy note: scope, weightings and implementation date.
• Guidance on using PPN 026, The Social Value Model, particularly sections 4.1 to 4.3 and Annex A.