WIREDGOV

Community Benefits is a Programme for Government commitment and a core part of the Tackling Poverty Action Plan. It ensures the Welsh public sector uses the £4.3 billion annual public procurement budget to optimise its social, economic and environmental impact.

Value Wales supports all public sector organisations to adopt the policy by providing guidance, training and practical help.

By implementing this procurement policy public bodies require their contractors to:

• recruit and train unemployed people;
• promote equality and open up opportunities for SMEs, third sector organisations, supported factories and businesses;
• work with disadvantaged groups, impact positively on the environment and contribute to communities through education, regeneration and engagement.

Value Wales currently supports 80 projects valued at over £4 billion and has developed a measurement tool, the first of its kind in the UK, to show outcomes of completed projects.

So far, fourteen have been measured, worth £229 million in contract value.

Value Wales found that:

• 79 per cent was spent in Wales with £122m going to Wales based businesses and 72 million going directly on salaries to Welsh citizens;
• 224 disadvantaged people received 20,000 weeks' work experience and 77 apprentices received 8500 weeks' training;
• Overall, around 2,200 jobs have been protected or created by applying this approach.

Finance Minister, Jane Hutt said:

The Welsh Government's Permanent Secretary, Derek Jones CB said: