Commissioning and Procurement Case Study

A Local Voluntary Sector Development Agency Builds Links with

Children and Young People’s Services Commissioners
This case study shows how a third sector infra-structure body developed a strong working relationship with
commissioners and procurement officers from their local authority and PCT. This relationship has created
real opportunities to deliver work under contract for local front line third sector organisations including
small providers.

Introduction
This organisation is based in a predominantly rural county providing a wide range of support services to voluntary and
community groups there. The organisation’s Children and Young People lead has developed the profile and activities of her
organisation to the extent that the voluntary sector is included in strategic discussions about the needs and aspirations of
children, young people and families; and commissioners in statutory organisations work with them to ensure third sector
participation in the provider market.

Activities
1. An Every Child Matters event two years ago was organised to enable the new locality teams in the county to hear from
voluntary sector providers working with children, young people and families in order to develop their thinking both
about the needs of those communities and priority areas for support. It also introduced them to the wide range of
providers who could contribute to that. The locality managers recognised, thanks to the intervention of the voluntary
sector development agency, that existing multi agency forums inadvertently excluded a lot of local knowledge and
experience because meetings were timed during the day when many people with relevant knowledge could not attend.
Learning: the development agency seeks to develop good relationships with commissioners at all levels through
proactive contacts; suggesting ways of developing better mutual understanding as a means to improving outcomes; and
constructive input to discussions. The pitch is not ”we aren’t around the table”, but “did you know how we can help
you/what’s going on?”
2. The children and young people development lead regularly attends planning meetings with locality managers to follow
up this event and the interest and engagement it stimulated, looking in particular at the identification of need, integrated
working (including joint resourcing and tenders) and evaluation. This means that the likelihood of voluntary sector
provision is considered throughout the commissioning process and the links are made between what is happening on
the ground and strategic planning. She also regularly briefs her members to keep them up to date with strategic
priorities, and runs training events to make sure they are aware of commissioners’ context.
Learning: the children and young people’s lead is vice chair of the “Enjoy and Achieve” group within the Children’s
Trust. This body sets the priorities for action and commissioning around this Every Child Matters theme. She has set up
meetings with locality managers, who are increasingly influential as commissioners, with the primary aim of talking to
them about what is going on in those localities, using her own and her members’ knowledge. A discussion that begins by
developing a good understanding of need in those communities leads to commissioners having confidence to ask third
sector providers to take responsibility for improving outcomes through service delivery.

A joint initiative to strengthen support services for the third sector

The ACEVO Commissioning Support Service

 3. As a result of her reputation, the local PCT has now asked the organisation to help them develop their provider market
in social care more generally. They have recognised that they need to understand more about what the VCS locally can
offer them and how to organise their commissioning and procurement process to enable that to happen. There was
limited previous history of involvement with the PCT, so this is significant. An event has been organised that will invite
interested VCS providers to talk to PCT commissioners about what would help them to bid for work and engage in the
commissioning cycle more generally. Participants will hear about the PCTs strategic objectives and key themes and
how the PCT would like them to be involved. VCS providers will talk about what would work for them and the whole
event will inform the PCTs commissioning strategy.
Learning: success breeds success.

Impact
The sustained, high quality work that the children and young people’s lead has done in this county has produced a positive,
productive relationship between commissioners and providers. The initial focus on using the expertise of local providers
to inform local plans built respect for what those providers were doing and there is an ongoing desire to use their
expertise in planning and needs assessment as well as under contract. The VCS is seen as an important player in strategic
development at Trust level as well as in localities and is fully engaged in the priority task of improving outcomes.
In this County, there are not a lot of big contracts to be let; but commissioners commission outcomes, not services. This
means that the analysis of what is needed by a particular community is crucial and the third sector is seen as a vital player
in that process. They are also seen as essential to informing specifications; and of course to the delivery packages of
support, which are increasingly purchased directly by children, young people and families in areas of greatest need.
When the Local Authority moved from grant funding to commissioning last year, they asked this organisation to work out
a way in which very small providers whose services were delivering fantastic outcomes could be retained as providers
and they are now in a consortium arrangement. This means that the development agency manages demand and supply,
keeping everyone informed about outcomes and issues. It is useful for the Local Authority to have this single point of
contact and is another mechanism for ensuring that a good partnership arrangement exists to learn the lessons of what is
working and why.

What Are the Lessons Learned From This

The key lessons are the opportunities that flow from engaging on the whole commissioning process, not just the
procurement part. VCS development agencies are perfectly positioned to develop the right links and build trust in the
expertise and professionalism of VCS providers – and to identify where the opportunities are.
In this case, a development lead has positioned the VCS very well in the consciousness of commissioners not just as
potential providers and/or kept at arm’s length, but as active and skilled participants in improving the lives of children and
families through improved, better targeted services.

ACEVO Commissioning Support Helpline

Contact us for advice and support on procurement and commissioning issues:
E: commissioning.support@acevo.org.uk
T: 0207 280 4937
W: www.acevo.org.uk/commissioning

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