Alternative Provider Collaborative
We're a partnership of social enterprises and charitable organisations dedicated to enabling engagement between social business providers and the Greater Manchester Integrated Care System (ICS).
We emerged in 2021 as a need was identified for a VCFSE provider voice within the system. We’ve grown exponentially and now demand to join exceeds capacity.
We now have around 50 partner organisations across all 10 Great Manchester boroughs. Services range from talking therapies, to cancer screening, to primary and urgent care and reach nearly 2 million residents. Partners are collectively employing over 2000 people and show turnover well in excess of £150m.
Our key objectives:
- Scale up the social business sector and create large scale social impact
- Innovate to tackle inequality
- Provide high quality service solutions
- Facilitate participation of smaller VCFSE organisations in GM solutions
- Strive for fairness and equality in terms and conditions with NHS trusts
- Ensure the new integrated structure fully recognises the value and worth of our partners
- Continue to develop a national profile for GM providers
- Support commissioning for social value at scale
Find out more about the Alternative Provider Collaborative from this short video of their launch:
Organisations involved
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News, events and opportunities
Key contacts
This work is being led by VSNW on behalf of the Leadership Group but cuts across all working groups and accord delivery.
Request VCFSE participation
For Statutory agency or other partner requesting VCFSE participation
The role of the statutory agency or other partner requesting participation.
- Use GM VCFSE Leadership Group as the first point of contact to set up VCFSE sector participation on a board/group
- Recognise the independence of GM VCFSE Leadership Group in selecting participants in whom members of the VCSE sector have trust and confidence. In certain cases, the board/ group will work alongside GM VCFSE Leadership Group to ensure that the appropriate participant is selected
- Provide the information requested in the below form (as far as possible) when making a request for VCFSE sector participation to the GM VCFSE Leadership Group
- Offer an induction for the participant and identify key documents the participant should be familiar with prior to starting to attend meetings
- Recognise the different issues associated with consulting and representing a ‘sector’ as opposed to a single agency and take these into account in terms of the expectations of the VCSE sector’s role (This may mean ensuring the participant has time to undertake consultation: the participant cannot offer guarantees or any such undertakings without consultation)
- Be clear about any requirements for confidentiality
- If possible, aim to financially support representation of VCFSE sector through offering an annual bursary
- Work with GM VCFSE Leadership Group to identify capacity building issues and way in which these can be supported
Dispute resolution
If there are concerns about anyone participating on behalf of the VCFSE sector, or if the participant has concerns about their role in the Board/Group, the situation will be dealt with informally in the first instance through discussions with the GM VCFSE Leadership Group and the group/board’s chair.
Please enter the below details if you are looking to request VCFSE participation on your board or group. We will get back to you:
