What Are Community Benefits? Community Wealth Building Community Benefit Case Studies

What are Community Benefits?

"Community benefits" are the method by which local communities and good causes can receive additional social value from public spending, and are now mandatory to consider across the majority of public sector procurement.

Traditionally examples have included suppliers guaranteeing apprenticeships or school visits to construction projects, committing to employing a local workforce and sub-contracting to local supply chains. Other activities may include improvements to public spaces, environmental initiatives, support for local charities and voluntary groups.

Led by Capital City Partnership, a strategy has been developed which will seek to deliver community benefits from public investments in the region throughout the lifetime of the £1.3bn Edinburgh & South East Scotland City Region Deal.

This website will enable communities and organisations to make requests for community benefits, facilitating matches with businesses and host news relating to the Deal. To find out more about making a request, visit our For Communities page.

However, the portal is also open to businesses in the region who are not part of the Deal, but wish to deliver positive outcomes for the communities they serve.

If you are a business or supplier looking for more information about how you can offer benefit to communities and good causes in your region, please visit our For Business section.

Community Wealth Building

Another core component of our strategy is formed by promoting the agenda of Community Wealth Building.

This is a community-focused approach which aims to work in a collaborative way to build local economies from the ground up - supporting a fairer society whilst providing a platform for people to influence and shape their local communities.

By redirecting wealth back into the local economy, it allows communities to make a huge difference to the benefits they desire for their local area.

This will be delivered in partnership with West Lothian Council, WHALE Arts and GoBeyond. To find out more, visit the Community Wealth Building page.