A blog by Monica Paul
Senior Social Value Manager, London & Home Counties
Each one of London’s boroughs can feel like a different world. This means making a tangible difference in the capital city requires a completely bespoke approach to each unique community, as two boroughs next to each other can be dealing with completely different issues and on-the-ground realities.
As a Senior Social Value Manager as well as a born and raised Londoner, I’ve seen first-hand how community based initiatives and support are vital to creating opportunities tailored to the borough in question.
Personally, growing up in London in the 90s, I remember having very little advice on careers and I had no clue what I wanted to do in the future. At the age of 20, I started working for a housing association delivering community projects and then joined a local authority. I knew then I loved working and supporting the community and wanted to make a difference however big or small to people’s lives. I took myself to university to study Social Science, which supported the work experience I was gaining.
I want young people to have the same experience I had when starting my career, but there’s so much competition nowadays. Since joining the construction industry ten years ago, I’ve felt that there’s more freedom in this sector to deliver meaningful, innovative initiatives with fewer barriers and processes to go through.
Having that freedom allows me to think creatively about how to engage young people in the industry. Collectively with our supply chain partners, we understand the importance of continuing to create more opportunities for young people and help them to get work ready.
Making social value work in Woolwich
In Woolwich, a town in the Royal Borough of Greenwich, we identified that unemployment was a pressing issue and one that we could help to tackle with our collaborative approach to social value generation. At a current project at Woolwich Leisure Centre, the team has set out to create as many work opportunities as possible for the local community, boosting social value where it counts most.
Procured through the Southern Construction Framework (SCF), the 12,800-msq, three-storey facility is set to become one of the country’s largest urban leisure centres when it opens in late 2025. The development includes first class sports facilities, featuring three swimming pools for various uses, wet changing facilities, spa and relaxation areas, two spin studios, two high-specification gym areas, a five-a-side 3G pitch, multi-use sports hall, two squash courts and Woolwich’s first indoor cricket facilities.
The project has seen an influx of work experience students and professionals on-site and since launching a Knowledge Quad there earlier this year, the team has been working with London South East College to host a weekly class for its Quantity Surveying students.
The Knowledge Quad, situated in the heart of the site, creates a vital link between industry and education, ensuring that curriculums align with employer requirements, and that students, trainees, and apprentices at all levels are provided with the relevant knowledge and skills to help them succeed. This multi-purpose training and learning facility delivers value by undertaking activity that focuses on four key areas: skills, education, employment and discovery.
Using the Knowledge Quad, the team delivered two rounds of Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) card training, where 20 people have gained a CSCS card, including 10 Greenwich residents.
To be able to deliver meaningful programmes that support local people is priceless and I’m particularly proud of the 14-week accredited construction study programmes we’ve delivered, as these really look to support those young people who are no longer in mainstream education.
Held onsite at the Woolwich Leisure Centre to a group of 16 to 18-year-old young people who are not in education, employment, or training (NEETs), this programme offers valuable practical experience and education about the opportunities within the construction sector.
Those young people, NEETs, are furthest away from the labour market and therefore require our support more than those in education. While speaking to young people, I realised the lack of support some receive at home and the daily challenges they face at the tender ages of 16, 17, and 18. Raising two boys myself, my eldest being 17, I see the opportunities that come his way and how fortunate he is. This empowers me to do more for NEETs.
As a result of the 14-week accredited construction programme (round one), we’ve successfully placed a few people on apprenticeships, and there was a second intake of students welcomed this November.
Those on round two completed the course on the 18th of December and will hopefully secure apprenticeships with our subcontractors. We’re making a massive impact on young people in Greenwich through these programmes and it demonstrates the need for continuous programmes such as these across London.
Jobs, accreditations and contracts
In addition to the Knowledge Quad and our work with NEETs, the amount of opportunities that have been generated as part of the ongoing social value work in Woolwich is remarkable!
This includes 27 full time jobs that have been created for local tradespeople, five Greenwich work experience students and seven apprenticeships have been hosted, and two T-Level students have undertaken their 45-day placement on site. In addition, 436 students have been engaged with the project and 71 staff hours have been donated, all contributing to the project scoring 45/45 during its recent Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS) visit.
As a Social Value Manager, the scope and ambition of the Woolwich Leisure Centre development has given me the opportunity to be innovative and to think outside of the box. Capitalising on being surrounded by void flats is just one example of this, as it meant I could approach local colleges to see if they would be interested in delivering classes from the vacant flats.
Thanks to this, Shooters Hill College have been delivering their Multi Skills lessons since November at the flats. We are also currently delivering a drylining contract for students interested in interior work, which offers students real-life experience. Also, as part of the programme, the project team will support students by introducing them to plumbing and electrical subcontractors who can demonstrate and guide pupils through drylining inside the flat.
On top of this, some of our supply chain partners have used the flats as part of the previously mentioned 14-week accredited construction study programme to deliver trade workshops for the NEET participants.
A social innovation exemplar
Each of these measures has been taken to address the Royal Borough of Greenwich’s unemployment issue. Helping the local community build key skills and education in construction.
The leisure centre brings a new opportunity to build up Woolwich into a strong, equitable community, as well as building a strong foundation for the health and well-being of the next generation. In short, it is a fantastic example of what social innovation can look like and how creative projects are making a real difference to the people of Greenwich. We look forward to applying this social value focused approach to more projects in the future, delivering as much positive impact as possible to the communities we work in.