The Lincolnshire Integrated Care System Co-production Framework

Let’s co-produce better health and care together!

Co-production is more than a method - it’s a way of thinking, working, and being that transforms how health and care services are shaped and delivered.

The Better Lives Lincolnshire Integrated Care System Co-production Framework has been developed by the Lincolnshire Co-production Conversation Group, a partnership of professionals, people with lived experience, and community leaders. It responds to the growing recognition that genuine change in health and care must be built with people, not for or to them.

This framework sets out a collective ambition to embed co-production as a core, everyday practice across the Lincolnshire health and care system.

It offers shared principles, practical guidance, and real-world examples to support people at every level, whether starting out or seeking to deepen existing work.

It also aligns with the county’s strategic direction, including Our Shared Agreement, the Better Lives Lincolnshire Integrated Care Partnership Strategy, and the NHS Lincolnshire Joint Forward Plan.

The impact of co-production

When done well, co-production delivers measurable and lasting benefits. It improves service design and delivery, strengthens trust, promotes fairness, and enhances staff morale. It reduces duplication and inefficiency, tackles inequalities, and ensures services reflect what really matters to the people who use them.

Commissioning with people, not for them

To achieve sustainable transformation, co-production must be embedded throughout the commissioning cycle, from needs assessment and service design through to procurement, delivery, and evaluation.

This framework sets out a clear approach to building co-production into planning and commissioning, making it everyone’s responsibility and ensuring lived experience shapes decisions at every level.

What the Framework Covers

• The case for co-production: Why we need it now more than ever
• Local alignment: Co-production’s role within Lincolnshire’s key strategies and system priorities
• Who should be involved: Recognising the value of everyone’s contribution—from people with lived experience and carers who reflect the local community to professionals, facilitators, and leaders
• How to make it happen: Practical advice on creating the right conditions, including training, accessibility, communication, and feedback
• Participation in practice: A spectrum of involvement, from sharing stories to shaping services and leading transformation
• Tools and models: Adaptable resources including the Lundy Model, the River of Co-Production, and the TLAP ladder
• Local examples: Stories from across Lincolnshire that show co-production in action
• How to get help: Where to get local support, advice and guidance.

A call to action

This framework is not a checklist. It is an invitation to shift culture, share power, and create better services together.

Everyone has a role to play. Whether you are starting a project, commissioning a service, or delivering care, this framework supports you to build more meaningful relationships and better outcomes, because in Lincolnshire, ‘it’s all about people’.