Co-production of adult social care
Speaking at the launch of the report at the SCIE, Department of Health and Community Care Magazine conference, Progress on personalisation, Julie Jones, SCIE Chief Executive said; "Co-production means involving citizens in collaborative relationships with more empowered frontline staff who are able and confident to share power and accept service users' expertise. Staff should be trained in the benefits of co-production, supported in positive risk-taking and encouraged to identify new opportunities for collaboration with people who use services. It is a potentially transformative way of thinking about power, resources, partnerships, risks and outcomes."
Key findings from Co-production: an emerging evidence base for adult social care transformation:
1. Co-production emphasises that people are not passive recipients of services and have assets and expertise, which can help improve services.
2. Co-production is a potentially transformative way of thinking about power, resources, partnerships, risks and outcomes, not an off-the-shelf model of service provision or a single magic solution.
3. 'To act as partners, both users and providers must be empowered'. Co-production means involving citizens in collaborative relationships with more empowered frontline staff who are able and confident to share power and accept user expertise.
4. Staff should be trained in the benefits of co-production, supported in positive risk-taking and encouraged to identify new opportunities for collaboration with people who use services.
5. People should be encouraged to access co-productive initiatives, recognising and supporting diversity among the people who use services.
6. The creation of new structures, regulatory and commissioning practices and financial streams is necessary to embed co-production as a long-term rather than ad hoc solution.
7. Learning from existing international case studies of co-production while recognising the contribution of initiatives reflecting local needs is important.