Commissioning and Procurement
At GCVS, we champion the adoption of ethical commissioning and procurement approaches that ensure public services are designed, funded, and delivered in ways that put people and communities at the centre, rather than focusing solely on cost or competition.
Ethical commissioning means making decisions grounded in values such as fairness, trust, collaboration, and human rights. It’s about viewing commissioning not as a bureaucratic process, but as a shared responsibility for improving people’s lives.
Ethical Commissioning:
- Focuses on better outcomes for people, not just contracts or savings.
- Promotes collaboration instead of competition between organisations.
- Values the social care workforce and ensures people with lived experience shape services.
- Builds long-term, trusting relationships among councils, the NHS, and third-sector partners.
- Aims to create person-centred, locally driven, and socially responsible services.
New Approaches to Procurement
Traditional procurement, often based on competitive tendering, can make it difficult for smaller or community-based organisations to participate and can discourage partnership working. GCVS promotes alternatives to traditional procurement that are more flexible, inclusive, and partnership-based, such as:
- Grants – funding community organisations directly to deliver local support.
- Alliance Contracts – shared agreements where funders and providers work as equals.
- Public Social Partnerships (PSPs) – where public bodies and third sector partners co-design and test services before formal commissioning.
- Collaborative Commissioning – involving communities and service users in decision-making.
- Flexible Frameworks and Community Budgeting – enabling local adaptation and shared priorities.
These alternative approaches reflect the principles of ethical commissioning by focusing on partnership, prevention, and co-production, ensuring that services are designed with communities, not just for them.
Through our work, GCVS supports public bodies and third-sector partners in rethinking how public services are planned and funded, helping build systems based on trust, fairness, collaboration, and person-centred outcomes.
Read more about our work on ethical commissioning and alternative approaches to procurement in our blog: Alternatives to Traditional Commissioning.
Projects and Key Initiatives
The Glasgow Promise Partnership 2023
The Glasgow Promise Partnership was a collaborative initiative involving third-sector providers, supported by GCVS and Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP). Partners secured Promise Funding from the Corra Foundation to: “Explore alternatives to traditional procurement and establish tests of change that will create a blueprint for how children’s and family support services across the country can be planned, procured, and delivered.”
GCVS facilitated a series of co-production-focused sessions that brought together third-sector providers and Glasgow City HSCP commissioning leads. These conversations enabled partners to collectively explore how to fulfil the project’s commitments and enhance service design and delivery.
A dedicated paper on Transforming Commissioning & Procurement was produced, outlining the principles of ethical and collaborative commissioning within the context of the Glasgow Promise project, alongside the core values of whole-family support.
The paper emphasises the need to move away from task-based, price-focused contracts towards outcomes-based approaches that prioritise the real impact services have on children and families. It advocates for alternative commissioning models—including Public Social Partnerships, alliance contracts, grant funding, and light-touch regimes—that encourage collaboration, flexibility, and innovation.
The Glasgow Promise Partnership calls for strategic, ethical commissioning frameworks that align with local priorities and focus on continuous learning and improvement, ensuring services better meet the needs and wellbeing of children and families.
Whole Family Early Intervention Fund
Glasgow City Council has aligned Whole Family Wellbeing Funding, Child Poverty Pathfinder and No One Left Behind monies into a combined Whole Family Early Intervention Fund with the aim of developing holistic, seamless support for families, recognising the range of needs and the impact of poverty.
This has involved discussions with the Scottish Government, HSCP, Council, and third-sector stakeholders to develop funding and policy alignment to achieve better outcomes for families. The refresh of the Family Support Strategy has also involved consultation with families to identify their support priorities.
If you have any questions, please contact the team for support at policy.engagement@gcvs.org.uk