Supplier of the Year at the GO Awards
June 19, 2026Posted by:
Public procurement is often treated as a compliance function. On the evening of 19 June 2025, at the Titanic Hotel in Liverpool, it was recognised as something capable of changing tens of thousands of lives.
PeoplePlus has been named Supplier of the Year at the UK National GO Awards 2025/26, one of the most respected recognition programmes in public sector supply, hosted by BiP Solutions. The award was made in recognition of three interconnected initiatives that together form PeoplePlus's social value infrastructure for public procurement: the Social Recruitment Framework, the Social Recruitment Advocacy Group, and the Social Recruitment Covenant.
What the award recognises
The Social Recruitment Framework is a free national service that connects people facing barriers to employment with employers who need staff, using government skills funding to cover pre-employment training at no cost to the employer. Since 2018, it has supported over 60,000 people and helped more than 13,000 into employment. Of those who complete a course, 79% are offered an interview, and 79% of those interviewed go on to secure a job.
The Social Recruitment Advocacy Group is a cross-sector membership network of more than 200 organisations, collectively employing over 500,000 people, that gives employers a structured, action-plan-led pathway to inclusive hiring through a Charter Mark framework progressing from Bronze through Silver, Gold, Ambassador, and Patron. More than 80 assessments have taken place, 95% of members hold a Charter Mark, and 70% have progressed between levels. Alongside the Charter Mark, SRAG membership provides access to quarterly summits, monthly learning sessions, bid and tender support, social value consultancy, and a specialist partner network of VCSEs and charities.
The Social Recruitment Covenant, launched in Parliament in November 2024 with government endorsement, is a public pledge through which employers formally commit to inclusive hiring practices. It now has nearly 600 signatories and is on track to reach 1,000 by the end of the year.
Together, the three initiatives take social value from intention to measurable, evidenced action, giving both commissioners and suppliers a practical framework for meeting their obligations under PPN 06/20 and the Procurement Act 2023.
What this means
Laura Savage, Partner Services and Social Value Solutions Director at PeoplePlus, said: "This award belongs to every person who believes that procurement can do more than buy services. To the team, our partners, and our SRAG members who turn social value from a promise on paper into something real: thank you."
Winning Supplier of the Year reflects not just what PeoplePlus has built, but how it has been built: in sustained collaboration with employers, partners, VCSEs, and communities who share a commitment to making social value mean something beyond the tender response.
Organisations interested in joining the SRAG, signing the Social Recruitment Covenant, or finding out more about the Social Recruitment Framework can contact the team at [email protected]
June 19, 2026Posted by:
