Insight

How can I deliver successful social impact in Scotland?

Thu, 26th Feb, 2026

Delivering meaningful social impact in Scotland isn’t just about meeting targets, it’s about creating lasting change for people, communities, and the environment.

Below, we explore what social impact is, and the key benefits it can bring through our suite of construction, civil engineering, consultancy and utilities frameworks.

What is social impact?

Social impact refers to the positive, measurable outcomes of built environment projects on societal and environmental wellbeing. Social impact is also intentional – the combined result of clear goals, thoughtful design and delivery, and a shared mandate to improve the lives of the communities concerned.

At SCAPE Scotland it is our mission to drive industry change and deliver meaningful social impact, across our built environment projects.

What are the key benefits of social impact to communities in Scotland?

When considering built environment projects in Scotland, social impact is as important a project outcome as the build itself.

Our SCAPE Scotland framework partners have signed a Community Legacy Charter that outlines their combined commitment to maximising positive outcomes for clients, the wellbeing of their communities and future generations.

Together, we are actively contributing to Scotland’s Community Wealth Building Agenda by:

using local suppliers, SMEs and Social Businesses, with minimum standards for local labour and local spend
developing initiatives to boost employment and providing training opportunities throughout a project’s duration and beyond – with access to quality jobs and career progression
leading community activities focussed on those who benefit most
promoting the construction industry to the next generation through education outreach, supporting young people to realise their potential
supporting diversity and inclusion initiatives
identifying projects that will enhance local spaces and improve biodiversity

Social impact and improving outcomes through early contractor involvement (ECI)

The public sector must adopt efficient procurement routes if they look to achieve genuine social impact from their projects. SCAPE Scotland's frameworks are one of the few that allow the public sector to engage with contractors early, through ECI.

This provides considerable benefits with regard to social impact planning: the ECI process provides valuable time and insight for delivery teams to engage with communities to understand the desired local economic, social and environmental goals for the programme.

With targets set by clients and stakeholders, each bespoke social impact action plan ensures that procurement delivers tailored, community-specific benefits, aligning public investment with local needs.

SCAPE Scotland champions social impact as intrinsic, a given part of the procurement process, in order to contribute the best outcomes.