Strategic aims

Embedding the voice of people who are in receipt of care and support is essential to creating services that are fair, effective, and responsive to real-life experiences. In Norfolk, we are committed to genuine coproduction - where people with lived experience, carers, and communities work alongside commissioners and providers as equal partners in shaping care. 

This means creating the right conditions for involvement - ensuring feedback routes are accessible, inclusive, and representative of Norfolk's diverse communities, and that people feel supported and empowered to influence change. It also means valuing lived experience as expertise in its own right - integral to how we design, deliver, and evaluate services. By embedding co-production across our commissioning activity, we aim to build a more transparent, accountable care system that listens, learns, and adapts to what matters most to people. 

People with lived experience must be at the heart of how we commission and deliver care and support, working with us as equal partners to shape services that meet their needs and reflect what matters most to them. 

Our ambitions

• Actively involve people with lived experience in the design, evaluation, and continuous improvement of services
• Work to understand what matters to people and communities, respond to local needs, and support neighbourhood-level decision-making - by listening to residents and recognising the complex lives people lead
• Embed structured feedback and engagement mechanisms into provider contracts, ensuring services learn and adapt based on lived experience
• Build on the insight gathered through "Conversation Matters," co-production forums, and the development of the ethical framework to ensure our commissioning reflects what matters to people 
• Provide accessible channels for ongoing feedback, and champion the values of The Real Care Deal - including being more human, promoting an ethical vision, building trust and transparency, and supporting good employment and business practice in how we listen, engage, and act on what people tell us
• Continue to work in partnership with advocacy groups, forums, and individuals to ensure a wide range of views shape how we commission care in Norfolk
• Support people to make informed choices, recognising that the best support may come from community networks, not just formal services

What this means for providers

• You'll be expected to show how people who use your services are involved in shaping and improving them
• We'll help you gather meaningful feedback and learn from it through shared tools and support

What people can expect

• To be listened to and treated as equal partners in their care
• To know that their insights shape how services are commissioned, delivered, and improved 
• To have clear, accessible ways to contribute to change - online, in person, or through representative groups