Turning Social Value Commitments into Practical Sustainability Action in Camden

At Brightly Software, social value is embedded in how we support customers, partners and the communities we work within. Our Social Value Policy reflects a long‑standing commitment to creating positive environmental, social and economic outcomes — both through our own operations and through the way we help organisations deliver against their sustainability and social value ambitions. This includes a strong focus on building skills and capability, supporting responsible environmental action, strengthening local economies and enabling practical, measurable innovation.

To help translate these commitments into meaningful local impact, Brightly has partnered with Sustainable X, an award‑winning sustainability consultancy that supports organisations to take confident, proportionate action and communicate their progress clearly. This partnership reflects a shared belief that sustainability should be accessible, structured and grounded in real‑world delivery.

Bringing Brightly’s social value commitments to life

In practice, Brightly’s commitment to social value is underpinned by a structured approach to sustainability and responsible business.

Brightly is ISO 14001 certified and Future Net Zero certified, with monthly monitoring of carbon emissions across office activity, home working and business travel. This is supported by green infrastructure and technology choices, climate dashboards, and a clear methodology for creating carbon baselines and tracking year‑on‑year reduction.

Alongside this environmental focus, Brightly invests in skills and inclusion through apprenticeships, training and wellbeing programmes, support for women returning to work, and targeted IT literacy initiatives.

Brightly also plays an active role in helping organisations deliver against their own social value commitments, providing expert business advice to VCSEs and SMEs, structured programme management, and dedicated social value sponsorship to ensure initiatives deliver meaningful, measurable outcomes.

Our partnership with Sustainable X brings this approach to life at a local level – combining Brightly’s sustainability commitments with expert, practical delivery that supports organisations to move from ambition to confident action.

Supporting Camden businesses to take confident, practical action

As part of Camden Council’s wider sustainability engagement programme, their current focus reflects their proactive approach to supporting local businesses in responding to evolving environmental and social value expectations. By investing in practical sustainability support, Camden is helping organisations of all sizes build capability, confidence and resilience as sustainability requirements from customers, funders and supply chains continue to grow.

Brightly and Sustainable X supported Camden‑based businesses that were already taking positive steps but often lacked clarity on where to focus or how to prioritise action. The programme was designed to ensure Camden’s diverse business community could access clear, proportionate guidance, helping organisations remain competitive, meet emerging expectations, and contribute to a stronger, more resilient local economy.

In January 2025, Sustainable X delivered a half‑day facilitated sustainability workshop designed to reduce confusion and overwhelm while building understanding, confidence and momentum.

The session provided a clear explanation of sustainability in a business context, explored carbon, social value and strategy in practical terms, and encouraged peer learning between organisations. The emphasis throughout was on identifying proportionate, business‑relevant next steps rather than abstract theory.

The workshop drew 49 participants representing 29 Camden‑based businesses, demonstrating strong local demand and broad cross‑sector engagement.

Post‑event feedback demonstrated consistently strong outcomes. Over 95% of participants agreed the workshop met its objectives, with similarly high ratings for organisation, relevance and usefulness. More than 91% reported increased knowledge, and 92.6% said they would recommend the session to others. 

Participants reported increased clarity and confidence around sustainability, praised the accessible structure of the session, and highlighted the value of simple, practical guidance on a complex topic. Many expressed strong interest in follow‑on support, underlining demand for deeper, tailored advice. Comments included, “Very well delivered and very informative,” and “The simplicity of the slides was great whereas the subject is complex.”

Bespoke sustainability support for London BioScience Innovation Centre

Building on the success of the workshop, Sustainable X also delivered targeted one‑to‑one support as part of Camden’s SME sustainability programme. The London BioScience Innovation Centre (LBIC) was already taking sustainability seriously but required clarity around monitoring, reporting and how to approach Scope 3 emissions in a structured, proportionate way.

Sustainable X provided focused consultancy designed to fit around operational pressures, beginning with an exploratory session to confirm priorities, followed by short, targeted sessions focused on Scope 3 emissions. This resulted in a clear action plan, defined next steps and sustained momentum.

Over a series of meetings, LBIC gained a clear understanding of Scope 3 requirements, improved confidence in monitoring and reporting, and strong internal alignment on sustainability priorities.

Adam Rasmussen Arda, Operations Manager at London BioScience Innovation Centre, commented:

“Sustainable X helped us gain the clarity and focus we needed to create a structured sustainability plan. While we had already been taking action, we lacked direction on monitoring and reporting, and it wasn’t clear where we needed to begin. We identified the exact steps required to build a comprehensive Scope 3 assessment and now understand exactly what is needed to move forward with confidence.”

Social value commitment and impact

Together, these activities delivered measurable social value across key TOMs (Themes, Outcomes and Measures), building sustainability skills and confidence among local businesses. This strengthened the resilience of Camden’s local economy, enabling informed environmental action including progress on Scope 3 emissions, and demonstrating an innovative, scalable model of practical sustainability support that helps organisations move from intention to action without unnecessary complexity.

Brightly’s partnership with Sustainable X demonstrates how clear social value commitments can be translated into real‑world impact through locally focused, practical delivery. By combining broad engagement with targeted, bespoke support, Camden has created space for learning, collaboration and action – helping build a confident, sustainability‑ready business community.

The programme offers a strong example of how place‑based sustainability support can empower local organisations while strengthening economic resilience, providing a replicable model for councils seeking to support businesses through the transition to a more sustainable future.