Social value in practice: what our partnership with the Parkinson Pioneers is teaching us

“Social value” is a phrase we hear often in tenders, ESG commitments and corporate strategies. It’s easy to include in a document. It’s harder, and far more meaningful, to practice it in a way that genuinely matters to people. 

For organisations that want to make a difference, social value can’t just be something we say. It must be something we grow into, through relationships, through listening, and through showing up consistently. 

A recent visit to meet the Parkinson Pioneers made that very real for me. 

A community that redefines support 

Our partnership officially began when I met the Parkinson Pioneers in person. What struck me immediately was the strength of their community. 

What started as a group of seven women has grown into around thirty players who travel from across the country for monthly sessions. These aren’t just training days, they’re days of connection, shared understanding and encouragement. An inclusive network built on lived experience rather than explanation. 

Pitch-side conversations with players and families brought home how Parkinson’s reshapes daily life, careers, confidence, energy, identity. It’s in these honest, open conversations that the human context becomes clear. And it’s there that the meaning of social value starts to feel less abstract. 

Partnership beyond sponsorship 

At TXP, our partnership with the Pioneers is still in its early stages. But even now, it’s clear that support isn’t just about providing a kit. 

A shared kit creates unity and pride. It sparks conversations. It helps raise awareness of a condition that is still too often misunderstood, particularly in women. Most importantly, it recognises a team defined not by limitation, but by resilience and spirit. 

But the real impact isn’t transactional. It’s relational. 

The difference between “helping” and “happening alongside” 

This partnership has already prompted reflection. 

It’s natural for organisations to approach social value thinking we are there to ‘help’. Yet when you spend time with a community like the Parkinsons Pioneers, you quickly realise you’re stepping into something that already exists, something strong, established and self-sustaining. 

Perhaps the more important role is not to lead, but to stand alongside. 

‘Happening alongside’ means listening first, learning, letting lived experience shape the direction. Recognising that impact rarely comes from grand gestures, but from small, consistent acts of presence. 

When you watch a Pioneers session, you see encouragement between players, families cheering from the sidelines, laughter woven through challenge. That sense of belonging doesn’t need creating. It needs respecting and supporting. 

Growing responsibility through relationship 

The Parkinson Pioneers remind us that connection and community come first. Our role is to support that thoughtfully and with humility.  Social value, at its best, isn’t about visibility for the organisation. It’s about value for the community and it starts with listening, and it grows through relationship. 

If you’d like to learn more about the Parkinson Pioneers, support their work, or understand more about how Parkinson’s affects women, we encourage you to follow their journey and help amplify their story.

Author: Claire Aspinall, Group Head of Marketing, TXP