Art of Commissioning

Across NDTi’s work with people, communities, provider organisations, commissioners and social and health care strategists we have been having ongoing conversations about challenges with commissioning.

Conversations have reflected a common view that commissioning, as it currently exists, has a number of common issues:

• It needs to be coproduced with communities;
• It needs to follow an asset-based approach;
• There must be a desire and space for creative thinking;
• Decisions need to be driven by a strong evidence base;
• Processes must be to support outcomes and be as light touch as possible;
• Budgets must be place based and;
• It must deliver value for money.

We believe that these issues will only be addressed by people working bravely together, within communities and across the silos of ‘client’ groups and health & social care. And so, together with partners from Community Led Support we have codesigned Art of Commissioning.

Recognising that commissioning is not a science but an art, Art of Commissioning will:

• Seek to develop new approaches to the activity we currently call commissioning that seek to deliver better outcomes with and to communities;
• Be led by the people from a geographical place and work across service borders and budgets;
• Understand current commissioning environments;
• Recognise the assets of communities, community members and services;
• Explore new ways of working, build and share an evidence base;
• Offer people across different regions opportunities to work and learn together.

Art of Commissioning is adopting the common principles developed by the 28 Community Led Support partners.

The programme is a combination of onsite (in communities and system) activity and cross site shared residential events and workshops. It lasts for between twelve and 18 months.

Our first partners are Bradford, Croydon and Leeds. Together we will be exploring alternatives to what is traditionally seen as domiciliary care and home-based support. We began working together in Janaury 2020 and will share our learning as it emerges.