Social Value in Defence: It’s Time to Do What We’ve Been Saying
The Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) 2025 promises something big, that Defence will not only protect the country but also play a real part in the lives of the people and places it touches.
It talks about a “reformed approach to social value” and says every pound spent should strengthen the Armed Forces and make life better for the public. That matters. But it will only mean something if the impact is felt on the ground; in the homes, schools, communities and garrisons where Defence families and neighbours live their lives.
That’s where we come in. We don’t just write strategies, we make them real. We turn social value from a line in a document into jobs, community spaces, local partnerships, and visible change.
Where Social Value Has Fallen Down in Defence
We’ve seen the same problems come up again and again, not because people don’t care, but because delivery hasn’t matched intention:
1. Big Promises, No Local Delivery: Social value has been mentioned in strategies for years, but families and communities often don’t see the difference.
What happens? Communities lose faith when Defence says “prosperity and opportunity” but nothing changes around them.
2. Tick-Box Procurement: Social value gets scored in tenders but rarely delivered in practice.
What happens? Suppliers do the minimum to win contracts, not to create impact.
3. SMEs and Local Partners Shut Out: Small organisations who are closest to the community but in reality face the highest barriers getting into Defence supply chains.
What happens? The money stays at the top and doesn’t reach local people.
4. Garrisons Not Seen as Community Anchors: Where bases could be brilliant neighbours, they are often disconnected from the towns they sit within.
What happens? Opportunities for local growth, skills and wellbeing are missed.
5. No Evidence = No Credibility: Even when good work happens, MOD can’t always prove it.
What happens? Treasury, Parliament and the public don’t see the benefit — and future investment is harder to defend.
How e50K Fixes This
We don’t do theory — we do delivery. We make sure communities and Defence both feel the impact.
How We Line Up with the DIS Priorities
The DIS has six big goals — here’s where we already deliver:
Making Defence an Engine for Growth: We help projects deliver benefits people can see, not just numbers in a document.
Backing UK-Based Businesses: We help companies show their value, win work, and stay in the ecosystem.
Leading in Innovation: Our innovation tools ensure Defence get real-time impact, not guesswork.
Building a Resilient Industrial Base: We grow local skills, trust and pipelines, see Bramble Woods.
Fixing Defence Procurement: We help suppliers meet social value requirements in ways that actually deliver.
Forging New Partnerships: We bring MOD, primes, SMEs, councils and communities into the same conversation.
What Makes Us Different
We are a women-led social enterprise founded by a defence spouse and a veteran. We know the Armed Forces community because we’re part of it. We don’t arrive with theory, we start with lived experience.
Here’s what that means in practice:
We put people first. Families, veterans, local residents.
We make policy real. We translate strategy into outcomes that change lives.
We connect national ambition to local reality. We work in the places Defence operates, not just the rooms where decisions happen.
We’re trusted. MOD, primes and SMEs come to us because we make delivery easier, not harder.
Looking Ahead
The DIS says a new approach to social value will come into force in 2026. That’s not far away. If Defence wants to be ready and credible, delivery needs to start now.
At e50K, we’re already doing it. We’re growing partnerships with organisations who don’t just want to meet requirements, they want to leave a legacy.
If Defence is serious about social value, then the work has to reach the people who live with it, families, veterans, local communities. We’re here to make that happen.
