What is Happening in
Cornwall?
Donna Peverley
Strategy Team
Chief Executives’ Department
“….the focus should be firmly on the future
and what the possibilities are. It's easy to get
bogged down by the past and what has gone
before.
People can end up stuck in arguments about
who did what and why - everyone's version of
events will be the absolute truth to them, but
will almost certainly vary from person to
person and knowing that stuff won't
necessarily help you to find a new way.”
www.cornwall.gov.uk
The Past
• Close down of the Local Area Agreement and the
dissolution of the Cornwall Strategic Partnership
left a large gap in ways of funding and
engagement with partners especially the VCS
• Three Voluntary Sector Summits in the autumn of
2010 attempted define next steps in terms of
meaningful engagement between the VCS and
the Public Sector
• Summits attempted to define a way forward
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Recap of VCS Summit 30/09/11 Eden
Project
• Fifty attendees, drawn equally from Public
Sector (including Council, Police, Health) and
key VCS organisations (initial list of 28)
• Agreement on development of VCS
Commissioning Board proposed by Paul
Masters, Cornwall Council Chief Executive
• Notes of Summit available at
http://www.cornwallstrategicpartnership
.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=289
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Evolving Remit of VCS Commissioning
Board
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Scoping of need
Performance and value for money
A common understanding of spend
Shaping procurement exercises
New ways of delivery and challenging
traditional approaches by both public and
voluntary sector
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Benefits for Sector
• High level strategic input into scoping of
Council priorities and needs
• Potential to develop longer term delivery
contracts (three years +)
• Opportunity to bid for alternatives to inhouse delivery
• Route forward for local VCS sector to
enable competition on a level with private
sector and large national VCS providers
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Benefits for public sector
• A ‘one stop shop’ for local voluntary sector
delivery
• Reduced costs and duplication of interacting with
VCS
• Easier to build a consensus with VCS for action
• Value for Money and savings through innovation
on delivery
• Breaking down delivery silos
• Strengthening of networks
• Building capacity
• Deepen and Broaden the relationship with the
VCS
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Who are the board?
• Public sector Commissioners from all CC
directorates
• CC Chief Executive’s strategy team
• Voluntary sector thematic leads
• NHS Strategic Commissioners as observers at
the moment
• Public health
• Devon and Cornwall Police
• Fire Service (from Jan 2012)
• Probation (from Jan 2012)
www.cornwall.gov.uk
VCS Themes
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Volunteering
Health and social care
Public health
Community Support
Advice to individuals
Equalities and Diversity
Children & young people
Environment
VCS skills for workforce
Social enterprise
Community Safety new theme to join January
2012
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Voluntary and Community Sector
Commissioning Board- Current Work
• To pull together VCS and CC localism teamthrough collaboration workshops to create more
joint working between Localism and VCS and a
better understanding of the roles of localism
• Ownership of the Cornwall Compact
• Prevention Commissioning strategy
• Social Impact Bonds
• In kind benefits to VCS and Community
Organisations
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Council Activity aligned to the Board
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Community Budgeting
Development of Health Watch
Local Integrated Services Trust (LIST)
Development of commissioning strategies
Co – design of services with Partners
European Convergence
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Hard Decisions - Money
• Cornwall Council (CC) announced 30% budget
cut in response to the Comprehensive Spending
Review
• CC decided to go for an upfront cut of 30% in the
first year.
• Funding was cut to a variety of VCS organisations
including Children’s services and Supporting
People
• Services were ended and some organisations
went to the wall
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Better news - finance
• 2011-12 No additional cuts to funding
anticipated in the sector this year
• Multi year deal for VCS infrastructure
organisations for the first time with secure
funding
• CC has a continuing commitment to be a large
scale investor in the sector
www.cornwall.gov.uk
On the Horizon
• Competitive funding
• Transforming Local Infrastructure
• Social Action Fund
• Social Impact bonds
• Community Budgets
• Did I mention the Big Society?
• Closer collaboration and Partnership working
www.cornwall.gov.uk
For further information
• VCSCB – Cornwall Voluntary Sector forum
•
http://www.cornwallvsf.org/commissioning/
• Future Cornwall
• http://www.futurecornwall.org.uk/
• Donna Peverley dpeverley@cornwall.gov.uk
www.cornwall.gov.uk
Cornwall Council
County Hall
Truro TR1 3AY
Tel: 0300 1234 100
www.cornwall.gov.uk
www.cornwall.gov.uk