Working for Essex County Council Commissioning Delivery The opportunity
Essex: The big picture Essex, one of the biggest councils in the UK Borders London, 2 international airports (Stansted and Southend) and 2 sea ports (Thames and Haven Gateways) 76% of the land is rural (farming) Popular for tourism Rich heritage in telecommunications, cloth manufacturing and engineering 2
Essex: where innovation brings prosperity The county of Essex 1.4 million residents 368,000 hectares 596,500 homes 60,000 businesses 4,642 miles of road 20 billion local economy And Essex County Council: 2.13 billion gross budget but shrinking rapidly 48,000 employees (34,000 in schools) 210,000 pupils across 571 state and 52 private schools Partners include 10 NHS bodies, 12 district and borough councils, two unitary authorities, 270 parish councils 3
What Essex County Council needs to Deliver for Essex 1. Children in Essex get the best start in life 2. People in Essex enjoy good health and wellbeing 3. People have aspirations and achieve their ambitions through education, training and lifelong-learning 4. People in Essex live in safe communities and are protected from harm 5. Sustainable economic growth for Essex communities and businesses 6. People in Essex experience a high quality and sustainable environment 7. People in Essex can live independently and exercise control over their lives 4
Welcome to Commissioning Delivery Commissioning Delivery enables Commissioners to put in place effective arrangements for achieving the Council s desired outcomes. It provides Commissioners with the resources, evidence and information that they need at each step of the commissioning cycle in a way that allows them to make effective decisions. Commissioning Delivery will provide subject matter expertise as well as plan and mobilise other resources from across the council and its partners to support commissioners and the Commissioning Outcome Groups (COGs) in making decisions. Individuals within Commissioning Delivery will provide Commissioners with the capacity to deliver commissioning programmes. The function has an Organisational Intelligence team, responsible for undertaking quantitative research using modelling and statistical analysis, and developing tools that support Commissioners to assess needs and track outcomes. Commissioning Delivery also provides the channel for engagement with our communities and service users to better inform commissioning decisions. Commissioning Delivery will help its customers by: Providing evidence and insight which supports effective decision making; Supporting them to understand what options are available when making decisions about how we use our resources to achieve outcomes; Helping to put in place the options that Commissioners choose to implement; and Undertaking monitoring and evaluation of commissioning decisions.
Commissioning Delivery Leadership Team Vicky Branchett Director of Organisational Intelligence & Commissioning Delivery Tom Day Head of Commissioning Delivery (Place) Anita Kemp Head of Commissioning Delivery (People) Claire Thompson Head of Organisational Intelligence 6
A move to outcomes-based Commissioning Over the last year ECC has undergone significant transformation in order to structure ourselves in the best way to deliver outcome focussed, evidence based commissioning. This has involved the separation of commissioning activity and operational activity, structured around the themes of People and Place. In future ECC will become less of a deliverer of services and increasingly a commissioner of services, and our People and Place Commissioners will be accountable for taking those decisions. Commissioners, however, can only make decisions based on evidence, and can only ensure their delivery with the right support. Providing this support is the role of STC and is essential to the success of outcomes based commissioning. 7
Our Outcomes 1. Children in Essex get the best start in life 2. People in Essex enjoy good health and wellbeing 3. People have aspirations and achieve their ambitions through education, training and life-long learning 4. People in Essex live in safe communities and are protected from harm 5. Sustainable economic growth for Essex communities and businesses 6. People in Essex experience a high quality and sustainable environment 7. People in Essex can live independently and exercise choice and control over their lives 8
A day in the life of Commissioning Delivery. Clare Long serving ECC employee who joined Commissioning Delivery It is exciting to be part of developing ECC into a successful commissioning lead, outcomes based authority. I am able to use my initiative and problem solving skills to come up with innovative ideas to provide Commissioners, our customers, with the right information to enable them to make informed decisions. My colleagues make all the difference. There is a wide range of skills, knowledge and experience within the team and the peer support we offer each other enables us to confidently carry out our role to a high standard. A particular part of my job I enjoy is Co-producing services and solutions from the point of strategies down to delivery. It is important to me and ECC that we work with people, to get it right for people. 9
Case Study. Jane Recently Promoted to Commissioning Delivery Manager I joined CSU having previously worked in the third sector managing the delivery of services to vulnerable people. I wanted a new challenge and I liked the idea of working for a new, emerging team. I was promoted to Commissioning Delivery Manager 3 months after joining as a Senior Commissioning Delivery Officer. As a Commissioning Delivery Manager I am responsible for the delivery of a portfolio of projects for Commissioners. This involves task managing teams, liaising with Commissioners and other colleagues across the organisation and meeting with suppliers and service users. Since joining CSU I have had the opportunity to gain subject matter expertise in housing - a completely new area of work for me, and take on responsibility for a key ECC initiative, the Increasing Independence Programme. My days are very busy, but I love every minute! Commissioning Delivery is a great place to work there is plenty to challenge and stretch capabilities. I enjoy the working arrangements which allow me to work flexibly and from anywhere there is an Internet connection, including home. 10
Case Study. Andrew Recently Joined ECC as Senior Commissioning Delivery Officer Commissioning Delivery is an interesting and innovative place to work and is often at the cutting edge, working to address difficult and complex problems with our partners. Commissioning Delivery provides support across a broad range of commissioning areas and this was what initially attracted me to the post. I have since had the opportunity to work on projects such as Dementia and the Increasing Independence programme, of which I had little prior knowledge. Although challenging at times, this has helped me to develop my understanding of ECC s core business and required new skills such as the ability to adapt and respond quickly. ECC s flexible working policy and focus on developing from within has enabled me to find a good balance between work, study and home life. The work is often intellectually stimulating and as the service is still developing, there are always opportunities to push yourself into new areas of work. 11