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www.hertsdirect.org
How the Third Sector and Public Sector can do Business
Susan Street, Adult Care Services, HCC
Frances Coupe, Children, Schools & Families, HCC
www.hertsdirect.org
Examples of Services provided by Third Sector Organisations
• Nursery and out of school care
• Care and support for the elderly
• Counselling and Mediation
• Sports and Arts activities
• Transport
• Children's Centres
• Consultancy
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How services are commissioned
• ‘Needs-led’ to improve outcomes for communities
• Investing in services, not just about funding
• Achieving Best Value
• Clear & transparent commissioning process
• Responding to the national agenda
Hertfordshire County Councilwww.hertsdirect.org
H
C
T P
BE HEALTHYSTAY SAFE
ENJOY & ACHIEVEMAKE A POSITIVE CONTRIBUTION
ECONOMIC WELL BEING
Children and Young Peoples PlanLocal Area Agreement
AN
AL
YS
IS, P
OL
ICY
, PL
AN
NIN
G
PROCESS PLANNING & MARKET ANALYSIS
POLICY & PRIORITIES
STAKEHOLDER VIEWS
SERVICE USER VIEWS
RESOURCE MAPPING
NEEDS ANALYSIS
EXISTING OUTCOMES
CO
NT
RA
CT
ING
PR
OC
ES
S &
MA
NA
GE
ME
NT
WHAT WE SHOULD PROVIDE
&WHAT OUTCOMES
WE WANT TO ACHIEVE
SPECIFICATION
PROCUREMENT PROCESS
MONITORING
EVALUATION & REVIEW
CONCLUSION
www.hertsdirect.org
Key drivers for how we commission services
• Need for improved outcomes
• Local priorities – shift to district commissioning
• Views of existing service users
• Existing provision – Evaluation
• Best Value – achievement of Gershon efficiencies
• Accountability
• Quality
• National Agenda – i.e. Every Child Matters, Our Health, Our Care, Our Say
• Hertfordshire Compact & supporting Codes of Practice
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Challenges
• Advertising opportunities – tendering, expression of interest, e-tendering
• Creating an equal playing field for all sectors
• Achieve a “mixed market” provider base – statutory, private and third sector
• Working within national and EU contract regulations
• Ensuring quality control
• Short term funding cycles versus long term outcomes
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HCC Standard Service Contracts
We usually use three types of contract:
1. Small Contract often referred to as a Letter of Agreement or minimum agreement (up to £5,000)
2. Medium Contract (up to £20,000)
3. Large Contract (anything above £20,000)
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Some Standard Contract Conditions
• Public Liability Insurance £5 million (any one incident)
• Employers Liability Insurance £10 million (any one incident)
• Acknowledge receipt of HCC funding where possible in leaflets, annual reports etc.
• Only use funding for the purpose it was intended
• Data Protection Act 1988
• Either party can give six months notice
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Standard Conditions of a Minimum Agreement / Contract
(WHERE the total value of contract does not exceed £5,000 over a three year period)
• Staff and volunteers are checked as necessary via the Criminal Records Bureau
• Evidence as to how the funding is being spent
• Evidence of feedback from users of services
• Complaints procedure in place
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Contracting Requirements
Clauses proportional to the value of the contract and would include:
• Equal Opportunities
• Access to services and monitoring
• Health and Safety
• Audit
• Confidentiality
• Payment
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Service Specification
• Agreed with provider – partnership
• Description of the services
• An indication of the volume of services
• Where and when the services will be delivered
• The objectives / intended outcomes of the service being provided, and how these relate to the responsibilities and policies of the appropriate HCC Department
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Quality Assurance
• How do you achieve and monitor quality
• Complaints procedure
• Feedback from users and their carers
• How users and carers are involved in the planning of the service
• Training programme for staff and volunteers
• Any Exit Strategy requirements
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Monitoring & Evaluation
• It’s a two way process
• How do we know the service is making a difference?
• Qualitative and Quantative evidence
• Proportional monitoring to value of contract – i.e. six monthly, annually
• Monitoring visits
• Aligning with other funding streams where possible
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Monitoring for Outcomes
• Listening to service users
• How feedback is used to develop service
• Developing evidence for preventative services is a key challenge
• Use of case studies
• Balance of data and local information
• Equality of access and outcomes
• Demonstrating impact – working with partner agencies i.e. police, health
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Issues for the Third Sector
• Constitutional restrictions
• Insurance thresholds
• Accurate costing of services
• Ability to demonstrate impact – marketing services
• Locked into short term funding cycles
