This pilot developed and tested approaches to SROI and sought to identify whether SROI is an applicable model for assessing the impact of investment funding. By identifying the potential social return on investment, it was also hoped that investors would be able to develop more appropriate measures for impact assessment and develop or tailor new financial products for the social economy sector.
The newly published (10th March 08)lessons learned report Investing in impact: Developing SROI is available for download from the document library
7 out of the 9 evaluative SROI reports carried out are also available from the document library - follow link above. The last 2 reports will follow shortly.
The information from the pilot activity will feed into development work being carried out by a range of organisations in Scotland looking at development patient capital for the social economy.
The impact of the project will be to improve understanding of social return on investment within both social economy organisations and public sector funding bodies. By understanding the social return on any investment and having a system to measure this financially it is anticipated that the benchmark will help organisations to embark on a process of continuous improvement in delivery of public services.
Social Return on Investment is a potential tool for the sector that could be utilised as a stand-alone measurement or integrated into a broader approach, where appropriate. What SROI claims to do is measure impact in financial terms. For Best Value the ability to provide a financial measurement of social impact would be a key step towards opening up the public procurement market for the social economy.
Standard process and series of stages:
Understanding scope and boundary issues
Stakeholder analysis
Develop an impact map (i.e. linking stakeholder objectives with outputs and impacts)
Identify appropriate indicators
Collect monitoring information on outcomes
Collect financial information
Desk research to find financial information on indicators
Calculate SROI
Do a sensitivity analysis and articulate assumptions
Stakeholder analyses have been completed, and information collection and monitoring systems have been developed. Impact maps have been produced for 9 organisations and monitoring systems have been agreed with 6 organisations.
Of the pilot organisations, one has received Social Investment Scotland funding, 5 have been recipients of Futurebuilders funding, 4 are partnerships between Housing Associations and organisations utilising Wider Role funding and 1 organisation is utilising a mainstream government programme funding.
The pilot organisations are spread across Scotland, and across the spectrum of social enterprise and social economy activity, working with young homeless people, adolescents, older people and people with disabilities.
The project is progressing well. During this quartern work has focused on a databank of proxies. This information covers economic and health information and will be used as the benchmark data for the entire project. Analysis has been completed for 2 pilots and staff are in the process of writing reports.
A round table discussion was held at the end of March and was attended by funders such as the Big Lottery Fund, Lloyds TSB, Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland, Scottish Executive and SCVO. Funders based in London are were also invited but none were able to attend. Forth Sector is in discussion with them to ascertain if it would be feasible to hold a similar event in London, possibly in June.
Cunninghame Housing Association/Impact Arts The Wise Group/Cadder Housing Association Grampian Housing Association/Solstice Nursery Home Support Scotland SHIRLIE YMCA Perth Subliminal Directions Factory Skatepark Forth Sector (Six Mary’s Place Guest House) Kibble Works The Community Warehouse (Kibble)
Innovative methods being developed: Financial proxies and benchmarking for:
Employability and ‘distance travelled’
Individual personal and social development
Individual well-being and quality of life
Impacts on referral agents and partners
Social networks/social capital
Methods for engaging young people in the evaluation activity
New EconomicsFoundation The New Economics Foundation has carried out a small-scale pilot 4 organisations. Promotional information about SROI indicates that it has applicability to the social enterprise sector yet limited evidence exists of its usefulness. This Action Research project will examine whether Social Return on Investment is an applicable impact measurement tool within a Scottish context. www.neweconomics.org.uk
Roberts Enterprise Development Fund SROI has been developed by the Roberts Enterprise Development Foundation (REDF) in the USA and is now widely used as an impact measurement tool in that country but it has not been rigorously researched and evaluated within a UK context. www.redf.org
