In 2022 HW Martin (Traffic Management) Ltd set an ambitious target to spend £80,000 with Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company.
Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company is a social enterprise run by the Royal British Legion Industries (RBLI) committed to supporting the armed forces, people with disabilities and those who are unemployed.
The target was part of a broader ambition laid down by the Chief Executive of National Highways, Malcolm Dare. HW Martin (Traffic Management) Ltd collaborated with six other stakeholder organisations to procure signage through Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company to the tune of £1 million (£800,000 of this target was met in 2022). You can read about the latest industry commitment to spend £1 million per year purchasing signs from the RBLI here.
The social value benefits that this investment would enable were significant, ensuring a lasting impact on the armed forces and disabled communities by enabling Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company to recover and grow following production losses caused by the Coronavirus Pandemic. It would also help the social enterprise reassimilate more ex-soldiers into civilian life through sustainable employment.
However to achieve the target, HW Martin (Traffic Management) Ltd and the other five supply chain partners needed to overhaul their procurement processes to provide the social enterprise with a smoother programme of work. This would guarantee its forward order book, improve delivery times, and better support the reassimilation programme by providing a consistent package of work that would keep them employed full-time throughout the year.
The figures are in, and the traffic management expert exceeded its target by 39% spending over £11,400 with the VCSE in 2022. This is £1,338 of social value (National TOMs Reference NT14).
Jay Taylor, National Sign Compliance Manager at HW Martin (Traffic Management) Ltd has championed the partnership since day one, he said:
“I’m delighted we were able to find a solution, collaboratively with RBLI and the other supply chain partners that ensured we could not only meet but exceed our target. We have contributed 14% toward National Highways’ total of £800,000-worth of signage procured with Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company and helped foster new relationships in the process and I couldn’t be prouder.
“We work with RBLI and Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company for two simple reasons, first and foremost they provide us with an excellent service and product, secondly but no less important, working with them helps us make a tangible difference to the lives of veterans with each sign we purchase.”
The company has established a target to increase its spend with the social enterprise by 7.5% in 2023.