Social Return on Investment (SROI)

SROI tries to answer a hard question: what is a charity’s social impact worth in pounds? It maps the outcomes of a programme, assigns each a financial value using proxies, and compares the total with what was invested — producing a ratio that communicates value to funders and commissioners.

SROI expresses a charity’s social value as a ratio (for example £4 of value per £1 invested), but the figure is only as sound as the outcomes, proxies and assumptions behind it. (Source: Social Value UK, SROI guidance, accessed 9 July 2026.) Because those choices vary, SROI ratios are generally not comparable between organisations, and a headline number should never travel without its method.

Use it where the value is justified and follow a recognised standard; otherwise, measuring your impact well is usually enough. See proportionate approaches in the Impact Measurement Handbook.