Last Updated on September 20, 2016
A new report shows that the Social Value Act can be a vital tool in systemic healthcare change. The report published by Social Enterprise UK says that the Social Value Act can be used as a tool by commissioners to address local priorities and maximise value for every £1 spent.
The Social Value Difference in Health and Care Commissioning report highlights how social value can be used as a lynchpin on which integration can be built, having the potential to transform health and social care services and deliver the joint-working at the heart of Sustainability and Transformation Plans.
The report also calls for time and resource-strapped commissioners, both in clinical commissioning groups and councils, to be given more information and training on social value to help them take up the opportunities presented by the Act.
The report details the findings of a three-year programme funded by the Department of Health, which brought together clinical commissioning groups, local authorities and health and wellbeing boards with charity and social enterprise providers in 12 areas across England to explore how to use the Social Value Act to address local health and care priorities.
The Social Value Act came into force in 2013 and gives public body commissioners the freedom to choose providers that deliver whole community benefit, rather than on cost alone.
The programme saw different public bodies coming together to look beyond their own specific remits and commission according to shared priorities, such as building resilient communities and creating local jobs. Crucially, it also helped agencies include these social value priorities in policies and procurement documents to move the Act into action.
It was delivered by Social Enterprise UK and the Institute for Voluntary Action Research, who have also published a practical 12-step guide on embedding social value into health and care for commissioners and procurement teams.
Peter Holbrook, Chief Executive of Social Enterprise UK, said, 'With the NHS having to find £22bn in savings by 2020, new models of delivering health and social care are desperately needed. It is crucial that the findings of this report are shared with health and social care commissioners and procurement teams across England. The Social Value Act is a tool that can help clinical commissioning groups and councils to make cost savings, avoid duplication and choose providers that deliver whole community benefit.
'We are calling on national agencies to encourage commissioners and procurement teams to use the legislation to their advantage – it became law for all the right reasons and puts people and communities first. The combination of economic uncertainty, squeezed public sector budgets and an ageing population mean that more than ever we need to find new ways to deliver services that are fit for the future.'
Dr Paul Bishop, Clinical Lead for Salford Clinical Commissioning Group, said, 'If we have the opportunity to invest our £300m budget in a way that brings greater return and wider health benefits for Salford residents, we’d be irresponsible not to.'