With the current economic situation with public services in Wales (characterized by an increase in demand with a decrease in spending), it is claimed that the Welsh Government has advocated co-production as a way of working that could transform health and social services and ensure the well-being of its current and future generations. The context for the present research is the Learning in Action project, which was set-up by the Wales Council for Voluntary Action and Public Health Wales in order to assist co-produced projects in their evaluative practices.
This current study has looked at the challenges of evaluating co-produced initiatives through the case study method. It addressed the three following research questions: What is co-production? How is it evaluated? What are the challenges? Qualitative data was collected via semi-structured interviews, field notes (including those from Learning in Action events), project report templates and other information relevant to the study. Three projects were included in the case study.
Data was analysed using a thematic approach, with both a priori and emerging themes used to develop a coded analytical framework in line with Edgar Cahn’s (2000) four values of co-production (asset recognition, redefining work, reciprocity and social capital) as a framework for some of the data. Further thematic analysis focused on other themes in line with the research questions: what is co-production? How is it evaluated? What are the challenges?
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Findings showed that Cahn’s four values were of great importance when delivering and evaluating co-produced projects. Other relevant themes related to the individual and shared understandings of co-production, structural disadvantages (relating to organizational set-up), issues surrounding trust, influence and relationships, and evaluation designs and methods.
Findings showed that co-production was not perceived as a new concept and people remain skeptical about whether it can be accomplished. They however remain hopeful that if done meaningfully and inclusive. lt it has the potential to bring about real change in services. There are concerns that evaluation is at risk of being a “tick box” (term discussed in literature review to address a procedure or process carried out merely to satisfy rules or conventions) exercise that is too fixed to take into account the real concerns of its service users and their communities. Co-produced projects and services and the people that adopt this way of working need to be flexible enough to change, and there are concerns that large organizations are not responsive enough to change due to their rigid structure. There are concerns about organizational motives and whether service users and their communities are actually being involved as much as they should be. Findings emphasise the need to actively, listen and involve service users and communities in the design and delivery of the services they receive. I have developed questions based on findings that could help co-produced initiatives ask themselves during evaluative practices (table 8)