At Collaborate, we take a whole system approach to commissioning, supporting commissioners to step into their role as enablers for social change. We look beyond a narrow focus on the technical aspects of traditional commissioning, working with commissioners to explore and develop the cultural, relational and collaborative aspects of their role.

We support commissioners to explore how ongoing learning and adaptation and whole system collaboration can push forward their practice, creating opportunities for change which rebalance power to people and communities to enable better outcomes.

We do this in the following ways:

Training programmes 

Our Commissioning with Communities programme is open to commissioners from across the country from a range of backgrounds including health, local authorities and police and crime commissioners, who want to stretch and develop their practice to make resources work better for communities. 

We also offer bespoke programmes for local areas who want to develop their collective approach to commissioning across their local system, tailoring our open programme to support groups of commissioners as they navigate their local priorities and challenges. 

Strategic reviews 

We work with local areas to undertake strategic reviews of their commissioning processes and support them in taking more collaborative approaches which make best use of collective resources for their local communities.

Dedicated support and capacity building 

We work with commissioners to provide dedicated support as they take the next steps with their practice. This support is tailored to local needs, but can include facilitation support as part of co-design or procurement processes, capacity building across commissioning teams, and ongoing advice, support and guidance.  

Embedding a focus on commissioning as part of wider strategies

As part of our wider work helping public sector partners develop organisational and place-based strategies, we use our expertise to help commissioning teams reflect on what this means for their work and adapt their approaches in a way that supports place-based working. This includes support to reimagine relationships with the VCSE.

To find out more and discuss how we can help, please contact [email protected]