originally published by: Newstart Magazine
20th July 2010

Co-production of local public services offers the best chance of making Big Society a success, according to a new report. 

Right here, right now calls for a radical shake-up in the way services are delivered, so that users become equal partners.

Only co-production ‘can break through the stultifying “doing to” culture of mainstream public services that saps power and confidence from the people they are trying to help’, it says.

The paper is the third and final report from Nesta and the New Economics Foundation (Nef) on the subject. Co-production is most commonly seen in social care and housing but the authors believe regeneration and welfare to work are among areas that could benefit and are keen for it to be tested out.

‘It moves far beyond “citizen engagement” or service user involvement in governance. It changes people from being “voices” to being agents in the design and delivery of public services,’ the report says.

The report identifies four main barriers to co-production becoming the norm in public service delivery: it can look ‘messier’ to funders and commissioners used to rigid objectives; it’s difficult to measure the benefits – they’re often long-term and complex; scaling up co-production will be difficult because it’s competing against an established way of doing things; and it requires a mixture of skills that will take time to develop.

Read full report >