Stakeholder Engagement Report - London Councils

It was felt that service user voices should be actively encouraged as part of the data
collection process, and providers need to foster a culture, which encourages and enables
those voices to contribute and be heard. This is in line with the recommendations of
the post-Francis report, with more feedback mechanisms for service providers to listen
better and act accordingly. Consistent mechanisms for reporting, learning and sharing
information from service users were suggested within SLAs, linking services and creating
pathways. This would allow information and evidence of effectiveness to be co- ordinated
at a service and programme level.
“Recommendation - ‘introduce a balanced scorecard approach and support providers
to use it’”
4.2.4 Relationships and building
partnerships
“It would be great to be able to work together, do joint bids and genuinely avoid
duplicating stuff out there”
Key issues
There are real differences between partnership working and collaboration. Stakeholders
felt that, in order for partners to work together effectively across their organisational
boundaries, they need to genuinely respect and value one another’s roles, responsibilities
and agreed and expected outcomes.
The new commissioning partners across health and local government, and the provider
organisations, will all now have fundamentally different roles from those previously held.
Stakeholders believed that commissioners needed to be stating the “what” and providers
the “how”, which is why clinical leadership and engagement is deemed so important.
There was a sense that expectations were shifting and yet communication of those
expectations is not being effectively disseminated. Providers in particular, feel vulnerable.
“We’ve got a chance now - really recognise that money is tight and get together to
review where we are. Working together might mean some things go to the wall, but if
there is some clever strategic commissioning, I think we will understand it all better”
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There were some excellent examples of London wide relationships cited by stakeholders;
notably the GMI partnership that offered a range of interventions to the most vulnerable
populations at risk of HIV (notably gay men and some African MSM communities).
However, there was also a sense that there is some duplication amongst providers and
that this is not necessarily cost effective.
Some clinical services expressed a loss of confidence in third sector organisations,
although others expressed a real willingness to engage and develop the relationships.
There was little consensus on this but a clear recognition that things were changing and
that partnerships, mergers and collaborative work between clinical services and third
sector providers was the way forward.