E-book contents
Here, we explore the different levels of involvement in care — from simply informing people to empowering them to lead — and show how the ladder of coproduction can help you reflect on where your service currently stands.
In this section, we introduce the six core principles that underpin meaningful coproduction — and offer real-world examples of how they show up in care services every day.
This chapter looks at where and how coproduction features in the CQC’s Single Assessment Framework — and what practical evidence providers can show to demonstrate it in action.
We spotlight some of the latest and most innovative approaches to coproduction — from lived experience leadership to co-auditing, storytelling, and digital-first collaboration.
Here, we walk through a step-by-step approach to developing care plans in partnership with the person — focusing on strengths, preferences, and shared decisions that reflect what matters most to them.
In this chapter, we explore how thoughtfully designed digital tools can make coproduction easier to embed, easier to evidence, and more accessible to the people you support.
Emerging tactics in social care coproduction
Coproduction is not a new idea. But the ways it is being put into practice are evolving — fast.
Across the UK, forward-thinking providers, peer-led organisations and innovators are finding fresh ways to embed genuine partnership into care. These new approaches go beyond traditional consultation or involvement. They’re focused on shared power, visible impact, and sustainable change.
This chapter highlights some of the most promising and practical emerging tactics in social care coproduction. They can help you go beyond theory, deepen trust, and bring more people into the heart of decision-making.
Why now?
In earlier chapters, we looked at how coproduction is central to delivering person-centred, responsive care — and how it connects to regulatory expectations like the CQC's quality statements.
But today’s care environment also demands new ways of working. Services are under pressure. Teams are stretched. People's needs are changing. In this context, coproduction has to be:
- More flexible
- More inclusive
- More efficient
- Easier to evidence
That’s why so many providers are experimenting with new tools and approaches that support more sustainable, scalable involvement — without compromising on quality.
- Lived experience leadership
This is one of the most powerful developments in coproduction. Rather than asking people to participate in predefined ways, lived experience leadership creates opportunities for people to lead from the front.
This might mean appointing people with lived experience to governance roles, service review panels, or co-design teams. It can also involve peer mentors, co-trainers or paid advisory posts.
What it looks like in action:
- A provider appoints two service users to their board, with training and mentoring included
- Family carers form a leadership group to co-develop improvements in short breaks provision
- Peer leaders deliver training to new care workers about dignity and rights
To help you get started, we’ve created a lived experience leadership plan you can use to shape roles, responsibilities and support structures.
- Peer-led service audits
In some services, traditional quality assurance is being reimagined. Rather than relying solely on internal reviews or manager-led checks, providers are inviting service users and families to co-audit the care they receive.
These peer-led audits focus on what it actually feels like to be supported — not just what’s written in policies or care plans.
Why it works:
- It builds ownership and trust
- It surfaces issues that might otherwise go unnoticed
- It can reveal blind spots in daily routines or communication
Some organisations train people with learning disabilities or autism to carry out these reviews in other services. This adds a layer of independence and insight that few traditional audits can match.
- Co-produced risk planning
Historically, risk assessments have often been written about people, not with them. But a growing number of providers are now involving individuals in co-producing their own risk plans.
This approach aligns with the CQC’s focus on positive risk-taking and can lead to better decision-making, especially in complex support scenarios.
In practice:
- The person receiving care works with their key worker to set out what they see as risks, and how they’d like those risks to be supported
- The team uses this plan to adjust staffing, routines or environment without overriding autonomy
This kind of approach is especially useful in mental health, supported living and care home settings where the balance between safety and independence is crucial.
- Rapid coproduction pods
Some providers are experimenting with small, agile working groups — sometimes called “coproduction pods” — to solve specific service challenges quickly and collaboratively.
Each pod brings together a mix of professionals, people drawing on care, and sometimes family members or community partners. They meet for a short period (such as four weeks) to explore one issue, test ideas and feed back.
Why this is gaining traction:
- It feels manageable and focused
- It creates visible impact quickly
- It builds confidence for longer-term change
Pods are particularly useful for improving routines (such as mealtimes or medication handovers), developing service policies or shaping new initiatives.
- Digital-first collaboration
Technology is helping more people participate in coproduction — especially those who might face barriers to traditional involvement.
This includes:
- Collaborative care planning tools that allow real-time input from service users, families and professionals
- Apps that let people track their own wellbeing and share updates with their team
- Surveys, polls or story-gathering tools that make feedback faster and more meaningful
We explore this further in how technology supports coproduction in care, including ways to ensure digital tools don’t exclude people with lower access or digital literacy.
- Storytelling as system change
Many services are now embedding lived experience storytelling as a tool for learning, reflection and improvement. These stories — whether written, recorded or shared live — can shape culture more powerfully than data or policy ever could.
How this shows up:
- A supported person records a video diary of their first six months in a new setting
- Family members co-write blogs about their experiences of care planning
- A provider collects anonymous stories to guide improvements in safeguarding practice
Stories can be used internally to support training, or externally to influence strategy and policy. They’re a powerful reminder of why coproduction matters.
What makes these tactics work?
While these approaches vary widely, they are grounded in the same core principles. They only work when:
- People are respected and supported to participate fully
- There’s a clear structure or goal
- Feedback leads to real change
- Participation is recognised and valued
If your team is looking to introduce new tactics, start with a self-audit of your current coproduction practices. Then explore which of these approaches could help address existing gaps or create new opportunities.
Making innovation sustainable
Innovation is exciting, but it needs to last. That means building processes that:
- Don’t rely on one champion
- Are embedded into normal routines
- Include time and space for reflection
- Get buy-in from both staff and leadership
Coproduction should not feel like extra work. When done well, it becomes how the work happens.
Read chapter six: How to create and develop a co-produced care plan
Contents
Here, we explore the different levels of involvement in care — from simply informing people to empowering them to lead — and show how the ladder of coproduction can help you reflect on where your service currently stands.
In this section, we introduce the six core principles that underpin meaningful coproduction — and offer real-world examples of how they show up in care services every day.
This chapter looks at where and how coproduction features in the CQC’s Single Assessment Framework — and what practical evidence providers can show to demonstrate it in action.
We spotlight some of the latest and most innovative approaches to coproduction — from lived experience leadership to co-auditing, storytelling, and digital-first collaboration.
Here, we walk through a step-by-step approach to developing care plans in partnership with the person — focusing on strengths, preferences, and shared decisions that reflect what matters most to them.
In this chapter, we explore how thoughtfully designed digital tools can make coproduction easier to embed, easier to evidence, and more accessible to the people you support.
