What is Joint Commissioning?
Joint planning and commissioning are a key product and manifestation of the children's trust strategic governance arrangements. They will lead to better integrated processes and integrated front-line delivery. This involves a step change transition that will require clear leadership, a strategic understanding of how far all outcomes in the County are met, and a more commercially minded approach to procurement - all focussed on the child or young person (ECM Joint Planning & Commissioning Framework 2006).
Definitions of commissioning and joint commissioning in the Staffordshire Framework have been agreed by the Trust Board as follows:
A definition of commissioning is "the process of specifying, securing and monitoring services to meet people's needs at a strategic level"
(Audit Commission Making Ends Meet 2003).
A definition of joint commissioning is "the process in which two or more organisations act together to coordinate the commissioning of services, taking joint responsibility for the translation of strategy into action".
What are the Aims of Joint Commissioning?
We aim to work towards improved outcomes for children by developing clear, robust and long term joint commissioning strategies for children and young people's services from 2006 onwards. These will inform future investment and changes in configuration, including the contracting and purchasing of public, private and voluntary sector services.
Our joint aims are:
- To promote an integrated approach to meeting population needs to achieve all five outcomes for children and young people.
- To manage the relationship between needs and services.
- To shift the balance between service 'tiers' towards prevention.
- To manage the relationship with expanding private and voluntary sectors.
- To reconfigure public services in the context of overall need.
What are the Objectives of Joint Commissioning?
- To ensure that joint commissioning is underpinned by a robust and comprehensive joint planning process;
- To develop written 3 - 5 year joint commissioning strategies for each 'sub set' of children and young people, based on the needs of the population concerned and our knowledge of the market;
- To use the priorities set out in the Local Area Agreement and Children and Young People's Plan 2006-2009 as a direction for joint commissioning strategies;
- To ensure that an appropriate level of skills, expertise and capacity is available for the joint commissioning function;
- To make clear links with other development agendas such as NSF Local Implementation Plans, Children's Workforce Development Plan;
- To link the commissioning processes of the 8 new District Trust Boards and 52 Community Learning Partnerships with the development of joint commissioning strategies for client groups.
For any queries regarding Joint Commissioning, please contact:
Cheryl Sherratt
Tel: 01889 571812
Email: cheryl.sherratt@southstaffspct.nhs.uk
Last Modified:
25/03/2008 09:55:03
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