Step by step
The commissioning cycle
Many children's trusts follow a commissioning cycle which includes these nine steps:
1. Look at the current pattern of outcomes for children and young people in their area, and recent trends, against national and relevant local comparators.
2. Within the wider picture, look at outcomes for particular groups of young people.
3. Using this data, and drawing on the
views of children, young people and their families, local communities and frontline staff, develop an integrated assessment of local needs.
4. Agree on the nature of the local challenge, identify the resources available and set priorities for action.
5. Plan the pattern of service most likely to achieve priority outcomes, looking in particular at how resources can be increasingly focused on prevention and early intervention.
6. Decide together how best to commission these services – whether they can be better provided by the trust's partners or by outside organisations, or a combination of the two.
7. Develop and extend joint commissioning from pooled budgets and pooled resources where appropriate.
8. Plan for any workforce development or process changes that may be necessary to support delivery.
9. Monitor and review to ensure services are working to deliver desired outcomes.