Health and social care commissioning organisations must involve the public in their work, while also promoting equality and reducing health inequalities. The involvement of members of public in health and social care commissioning is widely considered a valuable resource in helping to address health inequalities that impact underrepresented groups.

The new toolkit has been developed by patient and public involvement (PPI) researchers at ARC South London working closely with NHS and local authority staff who are involved in PPI in commissioning, public contributors and voluntary and community services and groups. The content draws on in-depth interviews and a national survey, as well as feedback from commissioners, which was then collated and analysed by the researchers. 

People with experience of health and social care services through their own use, or others they know, have valuable insight into how well those services work and how they can be improved. It is therefore vital that PPI in NHS health and social care service commissioning is effective so that services better meet the needs of local communities. This toolkit is designed to support commissioners to carry out PPI effectively

Mary Chambers, professor emerita at Kingston University and deputy lead for ARC’s South London’s PPI research theme

About the toolkit

The toolkit is for NHS and local authority staff whose work involves engaging with patients and the public about adult health and social care commissioning, for example, Integrated Care Board (ICB) commissioners and other staff. It helps staff think about what is important when working with public contributors and offers guidance on how to achieve effective PPI in commissioning.

The toolkit is organised across eight interconnected themes, each with supporting advice and information that public participants considered important. The eight themes are:

  • Communication and relationships
  • Commitment and receptivity
  • Clarity
  • Co-production
  • Lived experience 
  • Diversity and representation
  • Power imbalance 
  • Feedback

The toolkit contains links to guidance, information and examples of good practice, referencing public health, communities and whole system working that can be used in a range of organisations and settings. A key message across all themes is the importance of communication and relationships. 

Find out more

  • Download: Patient and Public Involvement in Health and Social Care Commissioning: a toolkit
  • We would like to thank the NIHR ARC South London for funding and supporting the research that underpins the toolkit. 
  • Our special thanks go to the staff and public contributors for their insightful participation in the research. We are grateful to the service user researchers who assisted in the survey design, data analysis and developing the toolkit. We are also grateful to the study’s advisory group members for their guidance and support.