Posted 29th August 2025
Walking 10K for Hope: Join Me
As I step down from ISV, I’ll be leading a 10K walk to honour two members of our community affected by cancer: Emma, a dear friend of our Co-Chair Penny, who recently passed away, and Antonietta, the mother of our colleague Val, who remains very much in our thoughts.
If you’d like the walk to support someone you care about, let us know and we can include them too.
The walk will take around two hours and be followed by lunch. We’ll agree the date, time, and location together once we know who’s joining us.
Join Penny, Val, and me – either in person or in spirit – by signing up here: Sign Up
I can’t wait to walk this final stretch with you!
Isabelle
Consultation Now Open: Strengthening Collaboration Between VCSEs, SMEs and Corporate Suppliers
The Institute for Social Value is launching a sector-wide consultation to explore how partnerships between VCSEs, SMEs and corporate suppliers can drive long-term social value. This work builds on a growing body of evidence that cross-sector collaboration, when done well, leads to better outcomes for communities and more accountable, inclusive decision-making.
We are particularly interested in hearing from those with direct experience of commissioning, bidding, or delivering public contracts. Whether you are part of a VCSE, a small or medium-sized business, a corporate supplier or a public body, your insights will help shape a forthcoming briefing note aimed at political leaders and public sector commissioners.
The deadline for contributions is 30 September 2025.
Submissions can be made online via this short form:
This consultation follows a recent panel discussion hosted by The Institute at UKREiiF, which examined the conditions that make collaborative working effective in practice. Speakers from the VCSE and private sectors offered candid reflections on the opportunities and challenges of partnership, and the conversation made clear that this is an area of both complexity and promise.
To continue the dialogue, we will be hosting a live online event on Thursday 18 September, 12.30–1.30pm. This will include a panel discussion open to all, followed by a member-only Q&A session.
To register for the event, please use the following link:
Further interviews and case studies will be held in the coming months as part of our wider programme of work on social value and procurement.
If you or your organisation have experience to share, now is the time to get involved. We look forward to hearing your views.
We’re looking for mentors for the third wave of the Young Professionals in Social Value (YPSV) mentoring programme!
- Just 6 hours over 6 months
- Open to anyone with 5+ years of work experience (not limited to social value)
- You’ll be supporting one of 40 young professionals currently waiting to be matched
If you or someone you know might be interested, please either register, get in touch or share this opportunity. Let’s support the next generation of social value leaders together
Thank you so much for being part of this journey and for helping us build a stronger, more connected social value community.