WWL4.1
Increased Community Integration
Where we live
- Neighbourhood
Increased Community Integration
According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), trust and cooperative norms are one of the indicators of social capital. This aspect of social capital refers to the trust and cooperative norms or shared values that are beneficial for society as a whole and which shape the way people behave towards each other and as members of society.
Key Value
A monetised wellbeing value of £4,200
This is the average value for 1 person answering ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ as opposed to ‘neutral’, ‘disagree’ or ‘strongly disagree’ to the following statements on increasing trust and belonging within their neighbourhood:
- “Most people in this neighbourhood can be trusted”
- “I feel like I belong to this neighbourhood”
Where does this headline value come from?
The values are guided by government policy (The Green Book) and sophisticated research into the relationship between trust and wellbeing (measured by life satisfaction.) The Green Book recommends that life satisfaction is expressed as £ monetised wellbeing, using the value of £13,000 for 1 WELLBY, over one year (see section on life satisfaction.) Research using national datasets can estimate the isolated impact of a change in community integration on life satisfaction, after accounting for important controls such as age, health, socio-economics and other demographics. Community integration is measured by trust and belonging to your neighbourhood in the Understanding Society data.
This research has been done by State of Life (The WELLBY Value Guide), which found that even after accounting for all these other factors, a person answering ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ as opposed to ‘neutral’, ‘disagree’ or ‘strongly disagree’ to the statement “Most people in this neighbourhood can be trusted” by 0.192 and to the statement “I feel like I belong to this neighbourhood“ by 0.356 (Table 3 in the above link). Therefore, this change in community integration which is the average of two coefficients is worth (0.192+0.356)/2=0.274 WELLBYs, or 0.274*£13,000 = £3,562 (rounded to £3,500).
The value is calculated using 2019 prices as per the supplementary guidance published figure.
Adjusted for inflation from £3,500, 2019 price year, the value is presented in 2023 prices, at £4,181. Our approach to inflation adjustments is explained on our Methodology page HERE
An overall rounded value of £4,200.
Local Needs Analysis Data Source
Before using this MeasureUp value, we encourage you to assess the local need in relation to the activity or outcome.
Here is the most useful initial data source for assessing local need in relation to this value.
To assess local needs related to the value WWL4.1 ‘Increased community integration’, you can use data from the Community Life Survey (2023–24) that reflects perceptions of social cohesion and trust at the neighbourhood level. Key indicators include: Strength of feelings of belonging to the immediate neighbourhood and Extent of agreement that people in the neighbourhood can be trusted.
Both indicators are available at the local authority level and updated annually. They provide valuable insights into how connected and supported people feel in their communities, helping identify areas where social bonds may be weaker and targeted community-building initiatives may be beneficial.
If you’re just starting out, start with Bronze first. The result of a Bronze measurement is just an estimate, but requires the least effort; whereas Silver, Gold and Gold+ give more accurate results but require more effort.
Each level has an effort to accuracy indicator, choose the one that’s right for you.
Bronze
Effort
Accuracy
Monetised value:
Monetised social value: Multiply the number of your participants you expect to increase community integration by £4,200.
Adjust for inflation to the year you are accounting for.
Silver
Effort
Accuracy
Monetised value:
Monetised social value: Consider whether the social value is created by trust or belonging to neighbourhood, and adjust the value based on this.
Gold
Effort
Accuracy
Monetised value:
Monetised value: Measure actual amounts of difference that community improvement makes to people’s lives
Gold+
Effort
Accuracy
Monetised value:
At the Gold+ level, you are building on your Gold value calculation by assessing the value against the counterfactual, or ‘what would have happened anyway’.
| Value Type: | Outcome |
What's this?
This is the type of value. Some values are outcomes, which means many different interventions might lead to them, others are specific interventions that have a set value due to a mix of outcomes of varying amounts they may create. |
|---|---|---|
| UN SDG Categories: |
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What's this?
The UN Sustainable Development Goals are global goals adopted in 2015 for all signed up nations to achieve for us to have a sustainable global future by 2030. There are 17 Goals that address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice. The Goals are all interconnected, and in order to leave no one behind, it is important that we achieve them all by 2030. |
| 2020 Social Value Models: |
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What's this?
PPN 06/20 Taking account of social value in the award of central government contracts introduced the Central Government Social Value Model in 2020 which all Central Government contracting authorities must use in their in scope procurements. It consists of 5 themes, 8 policy outcomes, and 24 Model Award Criteria which outline key priority areas to achieve more social value. |
| 2025 Social Value Models: |
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What's this?
PPN 06/20 was superseded by PPN 002 Taking account of social value in the award of contracts, published in February 2025 in line with the Royal assent of the Procurement Act 2023. This PPN outlined the requirement to use the new 2025 Central Government Social Value Model. The Model applies to all Central Government procurements commencing on or after 1 October 2025 under the Procurement Act 2023. Out of scope procurements can choose to apply the model but are not required to do so. The updated model is structured around 5 government missions and 8 outcomes, with 17 Model Award Criteria, and a mandatory minimum 10% weighting of the total evaluation score assigned to social value. |
Evidence
Measure Up focuses on empowering you to numerically measure the impact you’re having. We recommend that numeric reports are backed up with stories and other types of evidence to help illustrate, in human terms, the impact that’s being made on individuals.
We recommend seeking consent from one or more participants in your intervention to collect and tell their story. This should include a little background on the participant, a summing up of life before the intervention, the human impact of the intervention, and the longer term (if known) impact on the person’s life outside of, and after, the intervention.
Providing photographs, audio recordings, video interviews or even artefacts from the intervention (for example, writing, paintings, music, etc from creative interventions) can add more colour, and convey the emotional impact of interventions more directly.
In some cases it’s appropriate to anonymise or abbreviate the personal information of case study participants. No story should be published or shared without the recorded consent of the individual(s) it concerns. Individuals continue to own the rights to their stories and if they request you stop sharing the story or making it available online you should do so promptly and without need for justification.
Feedback
Measure Up is an open, collaborative and transparent. If you have any suggestions or feedback on our pragmatic, recommended approach to measuring and valuing social value, including wellbeing, economic, and fiscal impact, and effects on our environment, please get in touch so we can share and discuss this at our next Advisory Group meeting.
More help
We want to empower anyone to perform and improve their impact measurement – without needing a degree in economics.
If you need any more help, or just someone to do the legwork for you we can help signpost you to software, training and consultancy to help you get to grips with the impact you’re having.
