Commissioning as a practice is a mindset shift, particularly where we are conditioned to following processes or methodologies rather than using guiding principles.
For all commissioning participants a key principle is being contextual and flexible. This means there is no single way to go about commissioning. Each cycle will respond to complexity, cultural practices, safety, context, and the breadth of issues at hand. Cycles can be adapted and that means no two cycles will be the same.
What defines a commissioning cycle is the application of the shared principles and a collaborative design experience where:
- participants are demonstrably representative
- the process is transparent
- there are fewer fundamental constraints on what options might be pursued
- genuine shared decision making occurs
Every commissioning cycle should meet this threshold and be able to demonstrate how the shared principles guided the cycle.
Know what is driving the commissioning approach
We are focused on building stronger relationships that change the way government and non-government sector partners deliver services and achieve positive outcomes for our community.
We do this because we acknowledged through the 2021 development of our commissioning approach that:
- our current funding practices lack flexibility to respond to community needs
- investment in service provision has primarily been skewed towards provision of crisis services rather than services providing early support
- prevention and early support can reduce crisis service demand and provide better outcomes for people
- sector partners and people with lived experience have valuable insights and expertise to inform service and system design
- where we have worked together to identify needs and gaps and design solutions, people have better outcomes.
Page updated: 28 Feb 2024
