Co-ops and Social Care

1. Co-ops and Social Care Why and what are the opportunities for co-operative change?

2. Social Care – so what’s the problem? a story…

3. Presentation themes • What’s changing? • What’s the nature of social care? • Form & Function • Implications for social service delivery

4. Social Care – so what’s the problem? • Changing role of the state • Changing nature of people’s expectations • Changing nature of our society • Changing nature of our view of government

5. Reciprocity and The Decent Society • From Welfare State to Decent Society • The role of reciprocity • The role of democracy • Renewing social care

6. Social Co-ops & Social Care • The emergence of social co-ops raises key questions about the nature of social care, the role of the state, the private market, & civil society. • From a social & economics perspective, social care revolves around the notion of “relational goods” and the types of organizations that are best suited to provide such goods.

7. Relational goods • Relational goods are are those goods such as care giving, which are services to persons and which are characterized by the exchange of human relations. • In relational goods the quality of the personal relationship is at the core of what is exchanged between the provider and the recipient and can be optimally produced only by the provider and the recipient together.

8. Social co-ops are uniquely suited to the provision of social care because they can transform people from being merely the passive recipients of care, to being protagonists in the design and delivery of their care.

9. Reciprocity is the basis of the model. • Democratic control is how it’s implemented. • Social co-ops are social enterprises with a democratic structure. • Social co-ops are a classic example of how the co-op form was adapted by everyday people to meet basic social needs and to respond to a market failure.

10. History • Social co-ops were a response to the demand for new, and better, social services • Grew against a backdrop of an authoritarian, bureaucratic and inefficient state, and a freeze on public sector hiring. • In the UK, as elsewhere, changes in the role of government vis a vis public services, citizen dissatisfaction in quality of care & cutbacks in funding have led to a rising interest in co-op models of service delivery.

11. Size of social co-op sector • 7,000 social co-ops in Italy employ 280,000 employees of which 30,000 are disadvantaged workers. • 23% of paid labour in non-profits; 2% of non-profits • In Bologna, 87% of social services provided by social co-ops. • Quebec: 6,000 jobs, 81,000 members, 6 million hours of homecare by 101 social enterprises, 41 are social co-ops

13. Legislation • The purpose of a social co-operative is to “pursue the general interest of the community in the human promotion and social integration of citizens”. • Legislation stipulates that social co-ops have a special mandate to provide for the integration of disadvantaged persons into society. • Legislation refers to commonality of interest between social co-ops and local authorities for the provision of public goods.

14. Disadvantaged persons are identified as consisting of the following groups: physically or mentally disabled; ex patients of psychiatric institutes; ex inmates; drug addicts; alcoholics; homeless, minors at risk.

15. Multi-stakeholder Co-ops • A new model which makes possible the collaboration of different stakeholder groups to co-produce the service being provided. • Typically include: users, workers/carers, community stakeholders • Benefits: • Eliminate information inequalities • Allow for blended funding • Give all key stakeholders control rights • Promote innovation & problem solving • Allow for volunteer contribution

16. Social care services provided by social co-ops are not seen as a replacement of public services; they are seen as a complement to public services. • Social co-ops receive public funding & employer benefits for the services they provide.

17. CoPaps

24. Diffusing Reciprocity • Transformation of institutional culture • At both regional and national levels, social co-op federations negotiate directly with governments and municipalities on • Funding levels • Quality standards • Evaluation of services • Regulatory systems • State oversight

25. The future role of social co-ops is seen not only as a source of social care, but also as a means to hold government accountable for the provision of public services.

26. Co-op models can help address the following issues: • A means of mobilizing civil society around issues of social care • An alternative to state delivery on the one hand, and privatization on the other • A model for democratizing care • A model for containing costs while improving the quality and responsiveness of social care • A means for building a decent society through reciprocity

27. What’s needed? • A coherent alternative vision of social care • A political & social alliance to advocate for this vision • A new social contract amongservice providers and betweenthe social economy and the state • Deliberate government investment in the model • Specific policy identifying the role of social co-ops as a distinct service delivery form with a distinct function

28. What’s needed? State support for the model on the basis that it meets important social policy objectives. This means • employer supports, • promotion of contracting & partnerships by local authorities, • funding for co-op development, • funding for the creation of user mediating organizations

29. Civilizing the Economy • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztOUbi25-is&feature=youtu.be • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHjB0Hw0ZVw&feature=youtu.be

30. Thank You For further information visit: neath-porttalbot@progressive-cooperators.org.ukwww.bcca.coop restakis@bcca.coop