Nine Budget Changes that will impact on Social Value Delivery
26 November 2026
With the Budget news dominated by stories about blunders and child benefit caps we decided to look behind the news headlines to spot announcements that we think will impact social value offers and delivery over the following months. No AI was used in the production of this article. We read the actual Budget document (which you can find here) so any errors are all ours! As more information about these initiatives is released in the coming days and weeks, we will look to update it.
The National Minimum Wage is Increasing.
From April 2026 it will be:
Ages 21+: from £12.21 to £12.71 (+4.1%)
Ages 18–20: from £10 to £10.85 (+8.5%)
Under-18/apprentices: to £8.00 (+6%)
Apart from the fact that this will raise the personal incomes of thousands of lower paid workers, it is important for Social Value Professionals for two reasons:
Firstly, new PPN002 Social Value Model requires Central Government suppliers to pay contract workers above the National Minimum Wage (NMW).
Secondly, this increase brings the NMW much closer to the Real Living Wage (outside of London at least) and potentially makes it an easier sell internally if you are asked by a Local Authority customer to commit to paying the Real Living Wage.
2. A new Charity Tax Relief is being introduced
From 1 April 2026, a new VAT relief will be introduced for business donations of goods to charity for distribution to those in need or use in the delivery of their charitable services. Under the new rules, donations of goods by businesses to charities will be VAT-free if:
Goods are distributed to people in need, or
Goods are used directly in delivering charitable services.
This means that businesses will not need to account for output VAT on these donations and charities can receive goods without VAT cost, regardless of whether they use them or distribute them.
This matters to Social Value Professionals because you may previously have been told your business couldn’t donate items to charities or VCSEs because you would have had to account for VAT, even though you weren’t profiting from it. Now this is no longer the case, so it might mean you have something else to incorporate into your social value offer. In addition, you may find that charities are now willing to accept donations that they previously declined for tax reasons.
3. The Government is launching a Review into Youth Inactivity
The government is launching an independent investigation to tackle rising youth inactivity. Led by the former Health Secretary, Alan Milburn, this independent investigation will focus on how young people can be prevented from becoming trapped out of work, education or training.
For social value practitioners, particularly those working for Strategic Government Suppliers in high-growth sectors where there are skills shortages, the Review represents an opportunity to share knowledge and inform policy development. The government will be consulting and is keen to hear from employers, so reach out to your Public Affairs colleagues and identify how you can engage and feed into the Report. Samtaler will also be monitoring developments and sharing updates via our weekly social value news bulletin, which you can sign up for here.
4. The Government has confirmed £820 million spending on the Youth Guarantee: Jobs Guarantee Scheme
The scheme, which was originally announced in September, aims to tackle Youth Unemployment by offering a guaranteed six-month paid work placement for every eligible 18-to 21 year old who has been on Universal Credit and looking for work for 18 months. This will cover 100% of employment costs for 25 hours a week at the relevant minimum wage, and additional wraparound support.
Further details will be announced shortly but the Government is asking Employers to support the Jobs Guarantee Scheme by hosting the six-month placements, integrate participants into their teams, and providing mentoring, training, and upskilling opportunities to help them succeed.
Employers are being asked to work with Jobcentre Plus and local employment services to recruit eligible candidates and ensure smooth delivery and are also encouraged to adopt inclusive practices, offering accommodations for individuals with disabilities or health conditions, and create pathways for long-term employment by considering apprenticeships, progression routes, or permanent roles for those who complete their placements.
This is important for Social Value Professionals because work placements are currently difficult to deliver in practice. With specific requirements in contracts to commit to supporting the scheme expected you can get ahead of things by working with your HR & Recruitment teams ahead of time. Strategic Suppliers, especially, will be expected and encouraged to take part.
5. Free Apprenticeships for Under-25s in SMEs
The Budget announced that Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) will no longer be required to co-invest (i.e., contribute money towards the training costs) for hiring apprentices under the age of 25. This relief expands the previous-age cut off (from 22 to 24) and aims to remove barriers for SMEs to take on young apprentices by making training fully government-funded for those aged up to 25.
This change is in addition to the reforms to the Apprenticeship Scheme that the Government announced in October 2025 (including the introduction of shorter courses from April 2026, and working with employers to streamline the suite of apprenticeship standards available).
What this means for social value practitioners is that Apprenticeships are changing and if you operate an Apprenticeship Scheme, you may wish to work with your Apprenticeship teams to review and revise your offer. Apprenticeship Levy Transfers to SMEs in particular are no longer relevant, so if you work for a large, levy paying organisation and had it in your social value offer, take it out (and tell your bid teams to remove it from their copy libraries).
6. The Government is reinvesting a further £29 million from the fines it has collected from Water Companies since October 2023, into projects to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas.
The funding isn’t new - it is part of a total £100m previously announced by DEFRA, of which £11m has already been spent. There is limited information currently available about what projects will be supported but Social Value Professionals looking for clean water sustainability initiatives to support might want to monitor DEFRA’s website for the opportunity to engage with the projects being delivered by environmental charities and community groups throughout the UK – either through match funding or employee volunteering.
7. 250 new NHS Neighbourhood Health Centres are being created.
The Centres will be delivered through the NHS Neighbourhood Rebuild Programme through a combination of public sector investment and a new model of Public-Private Partnership and the expectation is that 120 will be operational by 2030.
The new Centres are designed not only to deliver healthcare but also to serve as integrated community hubs that directly address social determinants of health and generate measurable social value and Social Value Professionals looking to design and deliver place-based solutions, especially those operating in the Healthcare sector, could find them useful partners with whom they can integrate and enhance outcomes.
8. Books for secondary schools
The Government is providing £5 million of new funding to state-funded secondary schools in England in 2026-27 to increase book supplies to support the National Year of Reading.
In the UK, 1 in 6 adults struggle to read and 1 in 4 children cannot read well by age 11. 2026’s National Year of Reading aims to help tackle declining literacy levels by reconnecting people of all ages with the joy of reading.
There are a number of ways that employers can support the campaign, including:
Sign the Vision for Literacy Business Pledge and commit to taking action to raise literacy levels. Information on signing up can be found on the National Literacy Trust website.
Raise awareness of the Campaign and Run Internal Reading Initiatives throughout 2026: Encourage staff to "Go All In" with reading by promoting book clubs, shared reading events, or reading challenges within the workplace. Utilise internal communication channels and social media to promote the campaign's benefits and activities using the hashtag #NationalYearOfReading2026.
Support Community Programmes: Partner with local community groups, schools, or specialist charities (such as BookTrust, Reading Force, The Reading Agency, and Schoolreaders) to provide one-to-one reading support or donate books. The campaign is actively working to distribute books to children in areas of high need.
Promote Quick Reads: Support the distribution and promotion of "Quick Reads," short books designed to help adults and young people who lack reading confidence or face concentration challenges. These can be ordered through The Reading Agency and distributed to employees or the local community.
Volunteer Employee Time: Organise corporate volunteering opportunities where employees can act as reading volunteers in local primary schools.
9. Employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) relief for veterans
Social Value Professionals know that you don’t need a tax incentive to hire Veterans but you may wish to flag to your finance and HR teams that the employer NICs relief for employers hiring veterans in their first civilian role, which was due to finish in April 2026 is now being extended through to April 2028. This extension of the relief from 6 April 2026 until 5 April 2028 will be delivered via secondary legislation in the new year.
After this date support for veterans into employment will be covered through spending review settlements rather than through this tax relief with the government considering the most effective way outside of the tax system to support veterans into employment in line with the Veterans Strategy.
Social Value Professionals looking to refresh their strategies may wish to refer to the Employer’s Guide to Hiring Veterans which outlines best practices across recruitment, retention and development. Other ideas include:
Register with the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) to access veteran talent pools and free recruitment services.
Join Op ASCEND, delivered by the Forces Employment Charity, which helps employers connect with veterans looking for hiring support.
Use veteran-friendly job descriptions and implement guaranteed interview schemes to level the playing field
Create a veteran-friendly culture with veteran employee networks or affinity groups to integrate and retain talent and offer structured mentoring and buddy systems to help veterans adapt to your organisation.
Provide flexible working, support for reservist leave, and development opportunities that leverage veterans' transferable military skills.
Whilst headline stories may dominate the Budget coverage, these quieter announcements carry real implications for Social Value Professionals. From wage increases that influence procurement commitments to tax relief that unlocks new opportunities for charitable partnerships and initiatives aimed at tackling youth unemployment, the changes outlined here are worth planning for now.
By staying informed and engaging early - whether with internal teams or external stakeholders- you will help ensure you’re ready to turn these developments into meaningful social impact.