Recommendation 155

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (see Box 6) told us about co-commissioning, where the same services are “supported by a range of local commissioners which may include health, local authority, adult learning and skills etc, as well as criminal justice” to work with people on probation, as well as with other cohorts. They explained that they “identified the risk of clear duplication with already commissioned local authority statutory substance misuse services” and therefore “sought to ensure that people on probation get appropriate access to existing locally commissioned services rather than commissioning a separate service and therefore create duplication”. They told us about “the importance of building on existing services in our communities that already work with people facing multiple unmet needs and have the skills to engage with such people” because these services “are connected to wider support networks, both in the voluntary and statutory sectors and can help individuals access the wider support they need where they need it”. 287