Summary of feedback – online workshops:

“Coproduction – need to have regular conversations with people who access services, we need to have a wider net to go and talk to people – i.e. John from health watch reviewing experiences of people with LD in care homes.”

“Takes a lot of confidence to do co-production and courage – how open are we to have the conversations with each other about what hasn’t worked so we can start to do things differently and better?”

Comments from the online workshops:

“It has to be an ongoing connection between commissioning organisations and service providers and service users.”

“I think as so many of these services sit within the Council, having members across the various teams is vital. Support services are so integral to the support providers give”

“Constant misunderstanding due to commissioning cycle but not always understood by those external to commissioning.  e.g. about designing not buying. Exciting with opportunity to change, co-design and implement services collaboratively”.

“Reduces people to a cost centre – feels dehumanising”

“At a service level – nothing being commissioned where I live that’s use for my daughter or me as a carer” 

“Commissioners should have human contact with the people who use the services”.

“Being happy, family and friends – it’s what commissioning should be about?”

The first online workshop focussed on developing an Ethical Commissioning Framework. Participants strongly expressed a desire to broaden the focus from commissioning, as that is only one part of a bigger process, and that over time this would encompass a range of health and care provision across the county, not just social care. Further engagement with people who have a learning disability or autism highlights the need to rename this to something  makes more sense to people. For now the working title is Ethical Framework.