🚠Overview

This section outlines the different processes that Equal Care has used to develop our social care co-operative from foundation to launch and beyond. While it attempts to faithfully map out how Equal Care has progressed, it also illustrates the lessons we learned on our journey, providing caveats, watch-outs, and the pitfalls of developing any for-good business.

It is meant to be a guide suitable for anyone wishing to begin a care co-operative no matter if you are an independent founder, a current care agency looking to transition to a co-operative model or doing this as an initiative of the local authority.

Overview of stages

There are six stages of co-operative development (don't overthink it):

Foundation

• Setting the goals, ethos and governance model of the organisation.

• The Founders ensure they are committed to the task ahead.

• Developing the first Purpose Circle (board).

• Form the co-operative and register as a society ( or delay this if working within a Local Authority or directly with Equal Care Co-op).

Have a go

• Develop simple operational systems (try it out on Equal Care's platform!)

• Start the first Teams

• Give care to a small group as an introductory support service

Find the money

• The first community share offer

• Larger grant applications

• Keep the focus on growing trading revenue

Share power

• Distribute roles away from the founding group

• Increase the number of Teams

• CQC application for regulated care (this forces the clarification of roles and responsibilities)

Grow

• Applications to council contracts

• Form new local circles and build teams

• Marketing campaign to attract caregivers and receivers

Sustain

• Support new Circles to start

• Continue to engage the members and communities to uncover insights for improving the co-operative

• Focus on recruitment and retention

Operational development

During the first few phases, three other parallel processes should take place:

Policy Development

Regardless of its governing structure, every business requires policies. These are clear guidelines and rules that govern decision-making and behaviour within the organisation for all members.

Not only as social care is within a regulated sector, but more importantly because it very directly impacts the people care giving and receiving then policy setting becomes of the utmost importance and must be done thoroughly.

Equal Care Co-op's policies have largely been written from scratch to work in tune with the model described in this playbook. To use them and adapt them for your own situation please get in touch with us at [email protected].

Key Steps:

• Identify the need: determine the specific issue or area that requires a policy.

• Define objectives: clearly articulate what the policy needs to achieve.

• Research and consult: gather information on best practices, legal requirements, and industry standards.

• Work with relevant stakeholders, particularly the categories of the co-op membership that will be directly affected by the policies, such as an independent care worker.

• Draft the policy: create a clear, concise document outlining the guidelines, procedures, and responsibilities.

• Review and refine: seek feedback from key stakeholders and make necessary revisions.

Ares for policy development:

1. Care delivery model and approach

• How people start getting support

• Standards and expectations for flourishing teams

• Relationship-centred care

• Co-production with service users and families

1. Governance and ownership structure

• Multi-stakeholder membership model

• Democratic and sociocratic decision-making processes

• Roles and responsibilities of members

1. Employment practices

• Fair wages and working conditions for care workers

• Training and professional development

• Worker voice and empowerment

• Recruitment

• Problem-solving

1. Quality assurance

• Care standards and best practices

• Monitoring and evaluation processes

• Feedback methods and complaints (problem-solving)

1. Financial management

• Sustainable business model

• Transparent financial reporting

• Profit sharing/reinvestment policies

1. Safeguarding and risk

• Protecting vulnerable adults and children

• Health and safety procedures

• Data protection and confidentiality

1. Community engagement

• Partnerships with local organisations

• Volunteer involvement

• Building social capital

1. Ethics and values

• Co-operative principles

• Social impact goals

• Equality, diversity and inclusion

1. Technology and innovation

• Use of care platforms

• Digital inclusion

• Data-driven service improvements

• Data privacy

1. Regulatory compliance

• Meeting statutory requirements

• Engagement with regulators and commissioners

• Maintaining required registrations/certifications

Operational Development

1. Plan Service Delivery Model

• Determine the types of care to be offered

• Outline relationship-centred care approaches

• Develop care quality standards and best practices

1. Create Operational Procedures

• Draft processes covering key areas like caregiving, employment practices, and financial management. The concept of service blueprint can be helpful here.

• Develop step-by-step practices for daily operations

• Check for compliance with relevant regulations and standards but don't lead with this

1. Design Financial Model

• Develop a sustainable business plan

• Determine membership fees such as Commons Contrubution and capital requirements

• Create a profit-sharing or reinvestment strategy.

1. Plan Staffing and Training

• Define core staffing needs for administration and support roles, as well as first care worker cohort.

• Develop recruitment processes

• Develop training programmes for care workers and members

1. Establish Quality Assurance Mechanisms

• Develop monitoring and evaluation processes

• Create feedback systems for care recipients, families and advocates

• Plan for regular policy reviews and updates

1. Create Implementation Strategy

• Develop a phased rollout plan

• Assign responsibilities for each implementation stage

• Set timelines and milestones

1. Plan for Community Engagement

• Develop strategies for building local partnerships

• Create volunteer programs and community involvement opportunities

• Plan for ongoing community outreach and education

1. Establish Evaluation and Improvement Processes

• Set up systems for ongoing performance monitoring

• Plan for regular member meetings and feedback sessions

• Create mechanisms for continuous improvement and innovation

Technology procurement, testing and refinement

Technology is part and parcel of any effective and modern social care organisation.

A technology-driven organisation can empower the workers and the people being cared for, allowing them much more autonomy and higher quality of care than traditional models can deliver, where management is centralised.

The process and approach for finding the best technology platform fit is covered in the technology section.

Testing

Developing a robust testing plan for the technology platform is a high priority to ensure that it operates as expected, particularly as this will likely be one of the organisation's most significant capital and ongoing expenses.

An overview of testing categories:

• Functional testing - does it do what it is supposed to?

• Performance testing - does load quickly, is it accessible on low bandwidth e.g. poor mobile phone connection

• Security testing - is the data secure?

• Useability and accessibility testing - is it easy to use, and is that true for those with additional needs?

• Compatibility testing - does it work on all devices and browsers users may have?

• Acceptance testing - does it meet the requirements of your organisation, and is it ready to be released?

Refinement

Technologies continually improve with new features, refinements and fixes being released regularly.

The technology for a social care co-op should be no different. If its production is in-house, then there should be a continual process of improvements based on the product roadmap and addressing unforeseen issues. For organisations that have procured their technology, the provider will release updates.

Funding

One of the founders' major workstreams will be obtaining the capital to seed, operate, and grow the care co-op. This will begin with fundraising and then be replaced by revenues. However, the work to maintain working capital and move to surplus will continue.

1. The first step is to identify capital requirements by developing a detailed budget covering operating expenses until revenue is significant enough to break even and move into surplus.

2. At the pre-revenue stages before launch, fundraising will be required to generate the capital needed to run the organisation. This will be a continual process, with money raised from multiple sources, but will taper off as revenue begins to build.

3. Revenue will begin at launch and will grow as the co-op expands its customer base. This will eventually grow to replace the need for grants and other forms of fundraising.

Recruitment

It is somewhat self-evident, but employing people needs to begin early (it takes time!) and is a continual need. While the co-operative model has been shown to significantly reduce staff turnover in social care, the care sector has a historical low retention rate.

This, in combination with changing requirements and growth plans for the co-op, will mean that a high-quality practice will need to be built to attract, recruit, and retain workers. They are the lifeblood of the organisation.