Modernising Commissioning Green Paper published
Minister for Civil Society, Nick Hurd, has this week published the ‘Modernising Commissioning Green Paper’, asking for views on how the Government can help create a level playing field to enable social enterprise, charities and voluntary groups to bid for public sector contracts.
Nick Hurd has said, “Public services must make better use of tax-payer’s money. We need smarter commissioning processes that take into account the social and environmental impact of organisations awarded contracts. Good performance in these areas can take pressure off other public services and so create efficiencies across the board. This is part of a Big Society approach that will form the core of the Public Service Reform White Paper next year.”
The Paper asks for view on four key questions and highlights current areas the Government plan to discuss. The four questions and related areas for discussion are:
In which public service areas could government create new opportunities for civil society organisations to deliver?
- Introducing payments by result
- Setting proportions of specific services that should be delivered by independent organisations
- Introducing new rights for communities to run services
How could government make existing public service markets more accessible to civil society organisations?
- Reduce red tape by streamlining procurement processes
- Improve transparency of public procurement opportunities
- Address ways to manage the short term move towards large centralised contracts and long term move to decentralised contracts
- Launch a free service for small organisations to identify procurement and sub-contracting opportunities in one place
How could commissioners use assessments of full social, environmental and economic value to inform their commissioning decisions?
- Encourage understanding of social and environmental priorities of local people to be considered in the commissioning process
- Support the ‘Social Enterprise and Social Value Bill’ that requires commissioners to take into account social and environmental value
How could civil society organisations support greater citizen and community involvement in all stages of commissioning?
- Develop new package of support to enable local civil society organisations and state partners cement working relationships
- Extend the ‘right to challenge’ to public services
- Roll out ‘Community Budgets’ which will pool funding for local services and give more flexibility with regards to meeting local priorities
The Government is keen to hear the views of third sector organisations, commissioners and other public sector providers.
The deadline for responses is Wednesday 5 January 2011.
Download a copy of the ‘Modernising Commissioning Green Paper’.