Formation
The slow route and the less slow route
Every Circle in Equal Care is different as they are shaped by the people in it, the community around it, and the work it’s doing. There’s no blueprint or “one right way” to form a Circle. But there are a few shared principles we come back to time and again.
1. Purpose is co-created
Each Circle begins by revisiting its purpose together. This isn’t about copying what’s come before, but about blending local needs with the wider mission of the co-op. The process of forming purpose is part of forming trust.
2. Circles support other Circles (or Co-operation amongst co-ops)
No Circle stands alone. When a new one is forming, other Circles can offer support, whether that's through resources, encouragement, experience, or just being there to listen.
3. There’s space for adventure (and mistakes)
Building a Circle is a creative act. Things won’t always go to plan, and that’s okay. There’s room for trying things out, for joyful surprises, and for learning through getting it wrong sometimes.
4. People come and go
Relationships shift. Life changes. Circles grow and sometimes contract. That’s part of the rhythm. It’s important that people feel able to step away when they need to with dignity and appreciation.
5. One size never fits all
Circles are as diverse as the people in them. What works in one place might not work in another, and that’s a strength, not a problem. Flexibility and adaptability are essential.
The standing start
Creating a co-op takes time - a lot of time. There is a clear process for this that we won't repeat here because Co-ops UK provides step-by-step guides, tools and resources.
Equal Care's governance journey involved amending Co-op UK's model rules for multi-stakeholder co-ops and it took nearly seven months to register from beginning to end (3 months of this was just back and forth with the FCA). A very useful format is the Fair Shares governing document, which we would have chosen had we known about it at the time!
Alongside the practical challenges of simply registering the co-op, the majority of initial time was taken up funding and maintaining a fortnightly meeting pace of the founding members for over a year. Equal Care received a small grant of £5,000 (the UnLtd DoIT Award, now discontinued) but no other support for nearly a year. Although the slow pace helped clarify the co-op's goals and objectives very clearly, it also ate up voluntary time and effort from the founding membership that could have been progressing much faster.
There is work and advocacy happening to reduce the time it takes to register as a co-op, but these changes shouldn't be expected until 2028 at the earliest.
Be late to the party
The latest point at which you need to register is when you start trading. Everything before that can be done as a collective or by working with another organisation such as Equal Care, an aligned organisation in your area or your local authority. Being registered is one of the least important things to do at this stage in the group's development but it often takes the most amount of time and headspace.
Local Authorities
More (and faster) options are on the table for LAs:
Incubation Simply by offering a place to be, access to grant and governance advice, support with shared services (HR, finance etc) local authorities could dramatically accelerate the development of co-ops and community benefit societies in their area at very little cost. A simple application procedure which focuses on groups that have a hyperlocal presence will reap many benefits for that area. Combined with the systems and tools available from Equal Care or Community Catalysts for example, you could have viable caregiving micro-organisations within the year.
Commissioning The biggest lever that Local Authorities and Integrated Care Boards have to pull is around their commissioning frameworks and contracts. An example specification for Commons Based Care can be found in this playbook. For more resources and to collaborate on supporting a commissioning exercise in your area please email [email protected]. An excellent recent example of a Local Authority exploring this route is the Together for Greenwich report, which actively seeks to incorporate the principles of co-operation into social care commissioning work and increase co-operation across the borough, regardless of legal form.
Mutualisation This is a route with many exemplars. Opportunities for mutualisation, now that almost all council funded social care has been contracted out in market exercises, tend to be restricted to social work departments themselves.
Investment Local Authorities have investment portfolios and assets under management. By dedicating a small percentage (2-3%) of investment funds into social economy investments such as community shares or social finance, councils could start to achieve big impacts in their area by providing absent capital for local purpose-led organisations to start and grow. This is not grant-funding - the Local Authority can expect a small return on investment or at the least to get their money back and would provide essential finance to get new co-operatives to the point where they are contract ready and can begin generating revenue (and paying back the original investment). A community share is just that - new co-ops forming in the area would be able to advertise their share offer to attract investment from the citizenry as well as the council. This is key to preserving local accountability and also attracts more money into supporting new social care initiatives that councils would otherwise be unable to provide or access.
Governance Model Adoption
Equal Care chose a sociocratic governance model because it best fits our ethos and goals. This model delivers both a high-quality and decentralised method of care, which has many benefits over traditional hierarchical models in care agencies. Equal Care's platform is built entirely around sociocratic principles and practices. It means governance of the ‘socios’ - decisions in small groups. Note it is not the same as consensus decision-making.
Each area of Equal Care is run by a Circle, which uses processes of consent, self-management and role distribution to get work done. The two core principles of sociocracy - equivalence and effectiveness - map very well onto Equal Care’s core values and mission. Circles can decide to stay as part of the co-operative or can incorporate separately and remain a corporate member of Equal Care Co-op or go their own way.
All that said, it's important that groups research and try out different approaches to be aware of what else is on offer and how they feel to work with.
Middleton Cooperating decided that it wasn't enough to write sociocracy into their bylaws and opted to amend their registered rules to reflect decisions by consent rather than voting.
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