Coordinated project sustainability and social value plans

Project summary

MWH Treatment identified a need for a single, practical approach to ensure project sustainability and social value were being delivered consistently. To address this, it implemented one simple process that embedded sustainability from the start and supported accurate social value reporting in the form of the project sustainability and social value plan (PSSVP).

The background

The PSSVP was created to solve a recurring challenge across projects and frameworks – teams were committed to sustainability but without a single, consistent and practical approach. To overcome this, MWH Treatment implemented one simple process that embedded sustainability from the start and supported accurate social value reporting using the National TOMs (Themes, Outcomes and Measures). Six ‘pathfinder’ projects were used to develop the approach, ensuring the plan was shaped by real project experience.

The PSSVP provides structure, bringing net zero carbon; environment; community initiatives; health, safety and wellbeing; supply chain; and anti-slavery initiatives together in one plan that teams use from optioneering to delivery. The plans align with the PAS 2080 standard to ensure carbon hotspots are identified and whole-life carbon thinking is built into the process.

The challenges

A review of project audits and lessons learned across MWH Treatment frameworks showed that, in some cases, sustainability actions were being identified too late, delivered inconsistently or not recorded in a comparable way.

The solutions

The PSSVP was developed through a practical, evidence-led process based on real project challenges and the need for a consistent approach.

The PSSVP was initially trialled on pathfinder projects, including those in Hartshill, Forton, Chipping, Tarvin, Melton and Oswestry. Feedback from these pathfinder projects informed improvements to layout, clarity, usability and timing of key interventions. The refined PSSVP was embedded into MWH Treatment’s Integrated Management System, linked to project execution plans, environmental management plans and monthly SHEQ reporting. This ensures consistency, accountability and alignment with its operations.

The impact

The PSSVP has changed the way sustainability is delivered by embedding it as a measurable, accountable and evidence-led process. It has enabled significant carbon savings, reduced material use and waste, and delivered measurable social value totalling £19.9 million across the pathfinder projects.

The PSSVP has directly contributed to MWH Treatment’s achievement of BREEAM ‘Very Good’ status at Chipping. The behaviours, evidence and structured sustainability approach driven by the PSSVP were instrumental in enabling the project to secure a high BREEAM score, demonstrating the effectiveness of the PSSVP in supporting robust, evidence-based sustainability performance.