What is PPN 026 – The Social Value Model?

On 5th August 2026, the Cabinet Office published a new Social Value Model – to come into effect from 1st  January 2027.  This is for central government procurements to focus on delivering social value outcomes or Model Award Criteria (MACs).  The Government wants every pound spent on public procurement to boost growth and secure benefits for the British economy, ensuring spending directly creates skills/training, work experience, and jobs in every postcode.

PPN 026 applies only to central government departments, their executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies, however other public sector bodies may wish to adopt this approach too.

The new rules come into play for procurements commenced on or after 1^st January 2027 (i.e. any tender notices published after this date.

• They cover procurements with a total contract value of £1m + including VAT.
• For frameworks, social value should be assessed at framework and call-off stages in accordance with PPN 026 guidance which will be published in autumn 2026 (this will include a List of Community Programmes as part of bidder resources). The guidance will also provide information on social value eLearning, training available at the Government Commercial College and Cabinet Office ‘Community of Practice’ sessions.
• Authorities will be expected to select a relevant delivery outcome for inclusion in tenders.
• For contracts valued at £1m-£5m, a minimum weighting of 10% of the scoring will apply.
• For contracts valued at £5m or above, a minimum 20% weighting of the total score will apply to the social value question(s).
• On contract award, Authorities will have to ensure all social value commitments made in supplier tenders are monitored and measured contractually (i.e. where suppliers offer to support something from the List of Community Programmes, they will be monitored against relevant KPIs to ensure the relevant outcome is delivered).
• Authorities must publish KPIs for each contract on the Central Digital Platform and report on performance at least once a year via the contract performance notice.
• Evidence of poor performance against social value KPIs may be taken into account in considering whether there are grounds to exclude suppliers from bidding for future tenders.

Outcomes with specific community objectives, model award criteria (MACs) and summary details include:

1. Outcome 1 – Good jobs offering fair pay and good working conditions, helping people to get a job, stay in work and progress in their career with good employment opportunities across the country.
2. Outcome 2 – Skills: activities to address skills shortages, promoting skills development opportunities particularly to those who face barriers to employment or struggle to engage in the labour market.

Target cohorts will be:

• NEETs
• Those transitioning from education to employment
• Those with long-term health conditions or disabilities
• Care leavers
• Communities that face barriers to employment

Further details and a breakdown of MACs can be found HERE.