Onward delivers £1.67m in social value and supports 175 community projects across the North West
Leading North West housing association, Onward Homes, has gone beyond housing to deliver significant impact alongside its supply chain partners and community groups with £1,668,658* in social value created and 175 projects supported across the region.
At the heart of this work is Onward’s commitment to becoming a social impact organisation by 2030, with investment and activity focused on addressing training and employment, food and warmth, digital inclusion, and wellbeing across the communities it serves.
Throughout 2024/25, Onward used Match My Project, a social value tool that connects communities with its supply chain to deliver thousands of hours of support, funding, materials, training opportunities and hands‑on volunteering to help local people access essentials, build new skills, and strengthen local connections.
Empowering futures
At the landlord’s Farrington Mews development in Leyland, Keepmoat supported 22 apprentices, donated 387 volunteering hours, and delivered £561,802 in social value. One student, Jack, progressed from a work placement to a bricklaying apprenticeship with Keepmoat. Now a qualified bricklayer, Jack is passionate about inspiring others to enter the construction sector.
When speaking about his experience, Jack said:
“Securing a work placement with Keepmoat gave me valuable hands-on skills. Through my apprenticeship, I learned the importance of teamwork and communication on site and now a fully qualified bricklayer, I’m eager to keep progressing, with the ambition to one day lead my own team. This experience has shown me the real opportunities in construction and has given me the confidence to build a successful future. I’m so proud of everything I’ve achieved.”
Supporting food resilience
At Onward’s Wheatfields development in Bury, local contractor John Southworth donated £7k in materials and 80 volunteer hours to refurbish the community kitchen at Trust House, a facility providing hundreds of free meals every week.
Katie Jenkinson, Manager at Trust House, said:
“We are so grateful to Onward Homes and the team from John Southworth who worked so hard to refurbish our kitchen, which is a huge improvement on our old facilities. This will make a massive difference to us at Trust House as well as other groups who use the facilities.”
Bridging the digital divide
As part of Onward’s energy efficiency programme in Lancashire, Equans supported the landlord’s Digital Connect initiative by providing free devices, data packages, and digital skills training to those most in need. With an investment of £59,626 in social value, Equans enabled service users at Banbury Community Centre to gain essential online skills, fostering long-term independence, inclusion, and wellbeing.
Carol Wroot, Manager at Banbury Community Centre where the sessions were held, said:
“The digital sessions have had a genuinely positive impact. They not only helped build confidence among participants when using technology but also fostered a stronger sense of community and inclusion. It was wonderful to see residents engaging with digital tools that support their independence and wellbeing. The sessions were well-received, and the ripple effect of digital empowerment continues to be felt across the scheme.”
Building happy, healthy communities
Finally, Onward’s fire safety contractor EFT generated £33,733.74 in social value, delivering 14 wellbeing projects, volunteering 52 hours and donating food vouchers to support older residents experiencing food insecurity.
These projects have helped create healthier, happier communities across Onward’s Older Persons schemes, with customers Christine and Lesley saying:
“Thank you so much, this was a really kind gesture, and we are so grateful.”
“I’m sure the community will appreciate these vouchers which will help greatly.”
Joanne Danaher, Director of Neighbourhoods at Onward, said:
“This year’s achievements show the power of collaboration across our supply chain and communities. Together, we are creating long‑term meaningful change, from opening doors to new careers, to tackling food insecurity and strengthening digital confidence. We are so proud of what has been achieved together, and excited to further this impact with our partners in the years ahead.”
If you are a business, community group or local organisation that would like to learn more about how Onward can support you through social value, please get in touch by emailing socialinvestment@onward.co.uk or calling 0300 555 0600.
*Calculated using the TOMs framework, which converts outcomes into a financial “Social Value £”.