Savills Portugal

Historically, when we think of health and wellness in the built environment, images of gyms, studios and a communal terrace or garden probably spring to mind. But over recent years residential development has taken the concept beyond just exercising and keeping fit, and it is now more closely aligned with ideas such as a connection to nature and feeling part of a community. This can be broadly described as social value.

The need to feel part of a community is something that has grown in significance, especially post pandemic. Many of us now realise that having people around who we can relate to or just talk to and do things with is not only nice to have, but is key to our overall happiness.

In the UK, the health and wellbeing agenda has driven an increase in social prescribing (sometimes referred to as community referral), meaning you might walk away from a visit to your doctor, not with pills but with a prescription to take exercise or be involved in some type of community activity. This requires links to established community classes or groups, such as the wellbeing classes at Greenwich Peninsula (pictured above).

And what that means is that when new residential development takes place, all this should be considered from the outset. One easy win for developers is the inclusion of workspaces and well thought-out places where residents can interact – to work near home while not being at home.

However to really create a development that stands the test of time, there needs to be consideration as to how it will benefit the local community in the short, medium and long term, whether that’s through employment opportunities in construction jobs, designing the public realm and shops/commercial units so that they are accessible and open to the wider public, or involvement in more community projects like planting trees and proactively benefitting the local community/environment.

As a social species, being part of a community provides us with the sense of belonging we inherently need, and a well-considered and implemented social value strategy within the developments we choose to call home is a great place to start.

Here are just a few examples of London schemes that are embracing social value.