Commissioning Intentions 2015-16 on behalf of Children’s Trust

(Source: Suffolk Children’s Trust)

Dear Colleague

Commissioning Intentions FY15/16

We are writing to share our strategic direction of travel and intention to change specific services for children and young people. Please note that this letter is without commitment or prejudice to any tender process.

First of all we’d like to say thank you for the hard work and dedication that our partners and providers demonstrate every day for our most vulnerable children and young people.

Our Strategic Direction

Our vision is that all children and families in Suffolk have the right to: be kept safe, the best education, successful preparation for adulthood and employment, help to help themselves, excellent health services, and to be part of a strong and inclusive community.

Too many children do not have these opportunities and we are committed to changing that. We must be brave and change the way we work to deliver this.

We are in the middle of a prolonged period of budget pressures, anticipating another four years where we need to find ways of meeting increasing demand with less.

This challenge will only be met by working closer between commissioners, providers, partners and the community. With partners we are setting up early adopter sites in Connect Ipswich East and Connect Sudbury, as part of our Making Every Intervention Count and Health and Social Care Integration programmes for multi-agency working and to draw on community resources. We are exploring new digital delivery models to increase the volume of support we provide. And we are working closer with schools, early years settings and other universal services to meet needs earlier and more quickly.

We need a more integrated approach with health, social care and universal services; working more efficiently together to reduce duplication and helping people to be supported in their local network, making the best use of universal and community services.

Re-commissioning of services is therefore about optimising our use of resources including community, universal and digital to get the best outcomes in the most efficient, effective and sustainable way. Increasingly children and young people will be involved in our strategic commissioning, and we will also work closer with frontline staff and providers in order to develop the most innovative designs.

This is an invitation to contact the Children’s Trust Board members directly with innovative early help service models that are around a tenth of the traditional unit price; we look forward to hearing from you.

Read the full Commissioning Intentions document here

The document addresses:

• Making Every Intervention Count
• Raising the Bar
• Governance
• Quality and Contract Management
• Signs of Safety and Wellbeing
• Engagement with children and young people
• Volunteering
• Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life
• Keeping Children Safe from Harm
• Giving Every Child the Opportunity to Learn and Achieve
• Targeting Support for Children and Families Who Need it Most