Care as a common pool resource

As part of the LOTI project, Equal Care has produced a service specification designed to aid decision-makers in commissioning roles at local authorities and the NHS.

This service specification is a detailed document that outlines the requirements, standards, and outcomes expected of commons based care. It is available as a starting guide for commissioners and can be remixed and adapted to suit local needs.

The service specification document recognizes Care as a common pool resource by framing caregiving as a collective and shared responsibility that spans across formal, informal, paid, and unpaid domains. Here are key ways the document reflects this idea:

1. Collective Responsibility and Shared Decision-Making

The service encourages a model where care is co-produced by individuals, families, and communities alongside formal care providers. Care is not just the responsibility of professional caregivers but is supported by a network of informal caregivers (family, friends, community members), highlighting the shared nature of caregiving. The concept of shared support planning exemplifies this, as it includes contributions from both formal and informal actors, recognizing the importance of all stakeholders in caregiving.

2. Reciprocity in Care Relationships

The specification emphasizes reciprocity—where those receiving care and those providing it (both formal and informal) benefit mutually. This approach shifts the focus from individual transactions to a relational, community-centered model, where care is distributed and reciprocated across a network. The idea that care improves the quality of lives rather than just the quality of life for one individual reflects a commons-based perspective, where well-being is interconnected.

3. Recognition of Informal and Unpaid Care

By acknowledging the critical role of informal, unpaid care (family, friends, community volunteers), the document expands the definition of care beyond professional services. It recognizes the unpaid labor provided by communities as an integral part of the caregiving ecosystem, thereby treating it as a shared, non-commercial resource available for the benefit of the entire community.

4. Community Asset Mapping

The service specification includes asset mapping, which highlights community resources such as social networks, voluntary organizations, and informal caregivers as key assets within the care ecosystem. This recognition of care networks and community involvement as essential assets mirrors the way common pool resources operate—where shared resources are managed and sustained collectively.

5. Collaborative and Participatory Governance

The document outlines shared decision-making and participatory governance methods that involve all stakeholders in the care process, including those receiving care. This co-governance aligns with the management of common pool resources, where resources (in this case, care labor) are managed collaboratively to ensure sustainability and equity.

6. Service Resilience through Diversity

The specification calls for a resilient care system built on the diversity of care forms, relationships, and community assets. It emphasizes multiple fallbacks, adaptive learning, and flexibility in resource allocation, which are hallmarks of commons management, where shared resources are preserved and adapted to meet changing community needs.

By emphasizing shared responsibility, reciprocity, and collaborative governance, the service specification positions care as a commons—a resource managed collectively for the benefit of individuals, families, and communities.