Co-production
Introduction
Listening to communities and understanding their needs and aspirations are at the heart of everything we do at The National Lottery Community Fund. One way we do this is by supporting, encouraging, and funding co-production.
Co-production brings people and stakeholders together to design and deliver services. It goes beyond simply consulting people about decisions, to actively including and empowering them to participate. For example, by sharing power to jointly decide how money is spent, and how services are designed.
Here, we share what we’ve learned over the years about co-production, along with ideas and inspiration drawn from the projects and organisations we fund.
Why this matters
In the past, many services and programmes were developed and delivered without meaningful input from the people they set out to help. But there has been a growing realisation across many different sectors that this can make services impersonal and inflexible.
When implemented well, co-production can bring many benefits, such as:
taking part can increase participants' self-worth and confidence while providing skills and experience
recognising personal experiences as a strength rather than a thing to be fixed
being motivational for staff running the services, and re-igniting their passion for the job
making services a better fit for the people that use them and making an otherwise institutional situation feel more human
And what’s significant is that co-production tends to show people that you are committed to working for them and with them, rather than ‘doing to’ them.
What we've learned
There is no blueprint for meaningful co-production. It’s an ongoing process, which means all individuals involved need to keep reflecting and working on it. But here are the key lessons we’ve learned over the years from our grant holders.
Co-production is hard work, but worth it
It takes time and resources. This isn’t just about the practical things, like finding a time when everyone can meet. It takes time to build up relationships of trust between the people involved.
It’s not just about money and time. It’s also about approaching co-production with the right mindset. It can mean working outside the established way of doing things and be willing to change what’s done and how it’s done.
Co‑production isn’t simply about handing over responsibility to participants. It’s about people and professionals working with each other’s strengths, and using evidence, to create better services.
"Having parents and grandparents on the board keeps us honest, real and community-focused in everything we do."
Programme manager, A Better Start Bradford.
How we can best support co-production and things to consider
Key considerations include:
co-production looking different depending on the context and the people you are working with
being open to new ideas, and prepared to share power and responsibility
being ready to be challenged and possibly challenge back
being honest and transparent with people about expectations and limitations
people may have high expectations, so it’s important to manage these
budget or time constraints, or things out of your control, be upfront about this
making sure co-production is part of everyone’s role to get it right
trying not to rely on the same people to contribute, welcome new voices and perspectives
remembering co-production is not a one-off piece of work, it will evolve
being prepared to make mistakes, learn, and improve as you go
looking after people with lived experience and not putting them in uncomfortable situations and take account of professional boundaries
keeping people regularly informed about the outcomes of their work and show they are being heard
acknowledging their efforts, which can help to sustain motivation and engagement
being prepared to assess how well things are going and make changes if needed
knowing things can go wrong, even with the best of intentions and careful planning, don’t be afraid to stop or change if things are no longer working
It’s also useful to remember
Ensure everyone is using accessible language from the start
Using complex terminology, jargon, or acronyms can make it hard for people to understand and contribute.
Get the basics right
Formal meetings can be intimidating, boring, or off-putting for some. A few basic things can help, such as location, food and making it fun. These things may seem unimportant, but they put people at ease, especially in the beginning, which helps build positive relationships.
Don’t set people up to fail
There’s a fine line to tread between building capacity and overloading people.
Recognise people’s contributions
If people are putting their time, effort and valuable experience into making a service better, they should be recognised for it. This might be a payment, which may be essential for some people because without it, they couldn’t afford to take part. For others a sense of achievement, or a simple thank you is enough.
“It makes me feel good that others may have interest in what I have to say.”
Young person, Talent Match.
Key learning points for practitioners
Do it for the right reasons
Don’t go into it feeling like it’s an obligation. Everyone needs to believe in it and do it, not just say it.
Be open, honest and transparent
Take a no assumptions and no limits approach with both people and what they can or can’t do.
Get to know your people
Make sure you’re doing co‑production at a level that’s right for everyone.
Be pragmatic
If you can’t do gold standard co‑production, that’s ok, but be open and honest about your limits and barriers.
Remember you’re co-producing a service
You're not doing co‑production for its own sake.
Be flexible
Be ready to reflect and be challenged. Be equally ready to explain and share your own point of view and experiences.
Capture learning as you go
Work ‘out loud’, and proactively share what you are doing with others.
“At the beginning I knew co-production was important because it was the right thing to do, but now I feel like I can’t do it without them [the young people].”
Programme lead, HeadStart Blackpool
Key learning points for policy makers, commissioners and funders
Support co‑production
Support co-production by funding and giving projects sufficient time and resources to do it well. It can’t be an add-on activity that isn’t budgeted for.
Recognise your role in facilitating co‑production journeys
We too need to be flexible and open to change and challenge.
Be flexible and pragmatic
Don’t hold projects strictly to what they said they would do at the outset. They won’t know at the start what it’s going to look like – both the process and the output.
Find a balance
Find a balance between giving projects freedom to develop as they go, and guidance based on learning from others’ experiences. By its very nature, you can’t prescribe what co‑production looks like.
Encourage exchanges
Encourage exchanges of experiences between practitioners, support related evaluation activity, collect learning and share it.
Practice what you preach
Bring the voice of lived experience into funding, policy, research, evaluation and service design. Be pragmatic, recognise your limitations, and work closer to the communities you want to work with.
“Within the project, having individuals that are very open about their lived experience as colleagues is very positive […] you can’t underestimate the value of that, it’s helping us to develop.”
Programme manager, Fulfilling Lives South East
Key messages
Co-production can improve services by making them more accessible, authentic, and responsive. It can provide a chance for staff and organisations to think differently and question established ways of working.
Co-production can increase self-worth and confidence of people taking part, and help practitioners to better understand the lives of people they support.
Co-production isn’t a one-off activity; successful co-production is built on strong relationships, openness, and flexibility. It often means working differently from established ways of working.
Find out more
We carried out the research for this in 2019. To learn more, read our full report.
Visit our Evidence Library for other National Lottery funded studies on co-production.