Delivering positive change – GMHP social value report 2020/21

Last year Greater Manchester Housing Providers helped over 6500 residents towards work, supported almost 600 apprentices, spent £400m with local businesses, and facilitated 35,000 hours of volunteering in local communities – just some of the significant outcomes highlighted in our annual Social Value Report, published this week.

The report also reveals that our partnership helped customers gain over £22m in benefits and grants they were entitled to, supported 786 voluntary and community groups, and trained over 1700 staff in carbon literacy, illustrating the breadth and diversity of our activity and impact.

GMHP members are committed to maximising social value and supporting social outcomes through our work across Greater Manchester, and the benefits are not just felt by those living in social housing but also the wider community, businesses, and the regional economy.

‘At the heart of what we are about’

Gareth Swarbrick, Chief Executive at RBH and Chair of GMHP’s Social Value Group said: “Social housing providers are about much more than providing homes – delivering sustainable social, economic and environmental benefits in our communities is at the heart of what we do.

“Our activity goes well beyond traditional routes, such as delivering social value through our supply chains. We look to deliver a range of positive outcomes through our day-to-day activity and the partnerships we foster, from supporting the voluntary and community sector and local non-profit organisations, to raising living standards of residents and promoting participation and citizen engagement.

“Our annual social value report highlights the collective contribution of GMHP members to support residents, communities and local businesses, and is something we can all be really proud of, particularly given the significant challenges faced during the pandemic. Our teams adapted quickly and found new ways of working with our communities to ensure that we were able continue delivering services and support to create significant social impact across our neighbourhoods.”