Commissioning: Unlocking a Data-Led, Digitally Enabled Future in Adult Social Care
April 14, 2025
This article is part of our Digital Blueprint for Adult Social Care, a series exploring how technology and cultural change can come together transform services. In this article, we explore how systems can drive the shift from a reactive to a strategic commissioning model powered by key digital interventions - enabling more proactive, outcomes-driven approaches to meeting people's needs.
The Challenge
Adult social care commissioning in the UK is under significant strain. With the population of people aged over 85 set to nearly double by 2047 (ONS, 2023), the urgency to adapt services has never been greater. Currently, commissioning often occurs in reaction to immediate needs, rather than through strategic foresight. This reactive approach can lead to fragmented support, inefficient resource use, and poorer outcomes for individuals requiring care.
To effectively meet future demands, commissioning must evolve into a more strategic, digitally-enabled and data-driven service. This involves a shift from transactional models to ones that prioritize integration, population health, and co-production with communities .
Better Tools, Better Outcomes
Enhancing Choice Through eBrokerage Platforms
Digital brokerage platforms like Pairly represent a step change in how people access and commission care. These tools give self-funders and commissioners clear visibility of local options, from pricing to quality benchmarks. By surfacing real-time, comparable information, they support better decision-making, streamline commissioning, and align care offers with individual preferences.
Integrated data across health and care
A shared understanding of what’s happening across health, care, and community services significantly improves both the speed and quality of response and planning for future population needs. Well-designed Shared Care Records, combined with better integration of health and care data, offer a more holistic view of individuals’ needs and the support already in place. This visibility lays the groundwork for robust predictive modelling and enables more effective strategic commissioning.
Systems like Greater Manchester are leading the way in unlocking the potential of Shared Care Records. Through the development and application of the GM Care Record—which consolidates information from NHS and social care services across all 10 boroughs—the region is creating a single source of truth for individual-level data. This not only supports the delivery of personalised, high-quality care but also empowers the wider system to drive a fundamental shift towards prevention and early intervention for strategic commissioners, enabled by predictive analytics.
Using frontline-led insight to enable more flexible, person-centred care
Data and local insight can play a key role in shifting away from traditional care models—like residential or nursing care—towards more flexible, personalised options. This includes expanding extra care housing, tech-enabled home support, and wraparound community provision.
By combining what frontline teams are seeing—such as changing expectations or support needs—with broader patterns in demand and capacity, commissioners can design services that offer people greater choice and control over how and where they receive support. These insights help target investment into the types of care people increasingly want, and avoid overreliance on outdated, institutional models.
Digital engagement to support co-production
Online platforms like Citizen Space and Bang the Table make it easier to involve people who use services—and their carers—in shaping what gets commissioned. These tools can complement in-person engagement, widening access and giving more people a voice in decisions that affect them.
Leeds City Council has used digital engagement to boost community input into services, leading to more tailored support and better satisfaction (Leeds City Council, 2023).
Shaping community provision & supporting the VCSE sector
Digital tools help commissioners better understand and strengthen the community offer. Combining insights from frontline teams with local data on capacity and services enables smarter mapping of what's already available—and where gaps exist. This supports the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector, strengthens local resilience, and helps shift investment towards prevention and early support.
Making It Work: Practical Steps for Commissioners
Transitioning to digitally enabled commissioning requires strategic commitment and practical action:
Engage stakeholders early in co-design: Include commissioners, finance, IT, providers, and frontline staff from the start.
Co-production critical but takes time: Co-production of people with lived experience will be key in ensuring services match the needs of the population but selecting appropriate groups is important.
Invest in digital skills and tools: Equip commissioning teams with advanced analytics, integration, and engagement platforms, supported by continuous training.
Drive integrated approaches: Foster robust collaboration across health, social care, housing, and community sectors to break down data silos.
Prioritise prevention and early intervention: Shift investment upstream, leveraging insights to commission proven, effective services and interventions.
The Opportunity Ahead
A digitally enabled, insight-driven commissioning model can transform adult social care, delivering proactive, responsive services that maintain people's independence and improve overall wellbeing. This strategic shift will significantly improve outcomes for people supported by adult social care and drive long-term financial sustainability in care – and health.