The start of a new year often brings a sense of fresh energy. Many people use January to reflect, reset and set intentions for the months ahead, whether that is in their personal lives, their health or their careers.
At Sheriff Construction, we believe this is also a valuable moment for businesses. While individuals might call it a resolution, for our company it means taking time to set out our strategy, goals and aspirations. It is about being clear on what we want to achieve and how we conduct our business during that process. This January, we are doing exactly that and, while our wider business strategy work is still to come, one area where we have already been able to define some ambitions is social value. Read this week’s blog to find out what we want to build on in 2026.
Identifying our strengths
This month, we will be collaborating with teams across Sheriff Construction and our sister companies to refresh our business strategy and priorities for the year ahead.
At the same time, we are preparing a Social Value Impact Report that captures how we approach social value now and the positive impact we can deliver for the people who work with us, as well as for the communities and environment where we build.
While the report is still a work in progress, it has already helped us identify where our strengths lie. These include supporting inclusive recruitment and staff development, building health and wellbeing into our working environment, embedding fair and responsible procurement, making charitable support part of our culture, reducing carbon emissions, using resources efficiently, and taking a community and environmentally conscious approach to our own developments.
Five social value areas to progress in 2026
While we are already delivering social value in multiple ways, this is a continuously evolving area for Sheriff Construction. We are committed to building on what we do well, strengthening our impact and embedding social value more deliberately across the business as we grow. Some key areas where we want to do more in 2026 are:
- Creating a healthier, greener working environment: We are currently planning a new office space for Sheriff and our sister companies and exploring how this can support wellbeing, collaboration and focus through improved facilities, enhanced break and quiet spaces and additional green landscaping to promote biodiversity. We’re also exploring the feasibility of installing PV panels as a further means of achieving greater sustainability.
- Increasing community engagement: We want to expand our involvement in local community events close to our Head Office in Luton and the surrounding area, including inclusivity programmes, events and volunteering opportunities.
- Supporting client-led social value: We will be meeting with our clients to develop practical action plans for how we can support them with their social value objectives and putting a budget aside to make sure this work is delivered.
- Developing research and innovation: We are exploring opportunities to formalise the innovative solutions developed by our teams on site, with the aim of applying research and development approaches that turn practical problem solving into best practice for the wider construction industry.
- Strengthening environmental knowledge: Having signed up to the Supply Chain Sustainability School last year, we now want to encourage wider uptake of this training opportunity across our site and office teams, with a target to achieve Bronze accreditation by mid-2026 and Silver accreditation by the end of the year.
What do you think?
Aspirations are important for any business but, in our view, they matter even more for companies like ours that want to grow in a way that is responsible and rooted in long-term impact. By being deliberate about our social value goals, we can ensure our growth benefits our people, supports our communities and strengthens our environmental practices.
We will share a further update when our Social Value Impact Report is published but, in the meantime, we would love to hear your thoughts. What do you think construction businesses should prioritise when it comes to social value? Join the conversation by commenting over on our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.
06.01.2026
Feature image: Freepik
