Sheffield City Council is developing a new outcomes-based social investment programme aimed at getting private sector partners to deliver social improvements.
The authority this week launched a tender for an adviser to help them deliver the Sheffield Outcomes Fund.
The new vehicle would be primed with funding from public agencies, who would seek private sector partners to deliver on selected outcomes.
A prior information notice published on the European Union tenders website by the council, said: “We are interested in delivering significant, sustained, financially secure changes to the nature of public service delivery, always in pursuit of better outcomes.”
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The council will hold meetings with suppliers as early as next month in an attempt to formulate a full tender.
It foresees that public sector organisations would make a one-off payment to the fund from their own resources, or matched with other sources of capital.
The public sector commissioners would publish a set of outcomes it wanted to achieve, along with a range of prices that they would be prepared to pay for the outcomes.
The fund would use the money raised to stimulate development, delivery and financing of a set of business cases in pursuit of the outcomes.
Sheffield said that it has already started work on a number of the business case ideas internally, and is interested in understanding providers’ interest in taking part to develop the ideas.
Policy areas the council is interested in developing further are early years; mental health; youth outcomes; primary care; adults with complex needs; early years and attachment.
The council plans to host supplier events and market sounding meetings to further develop its understanding of the market for advisory support for its social investment programme.
Nobody from the council was available to discuss the project when contacted by Room151.
