Co-production: Building Health and Care Together

Co-production Week 2025 took place again this year. It was a good moment to reflect on what equal partnership really means in health and social care. Co-production is not a buzzword it’s about people who use services, families, carers, and professionals working together to shape decisions and improvements. Everyone brings expertise: professionals offer technical knowledge, while patients and carers bring insight drawn from lived experience.

Why Co-production Matters

When co-production is done well, it transforms how services are designed and delivered. It changes relationships, priorities, and outcomes.

It can lead to:

Better, more responsive services because they’re grounded in real experiences rather than assumptions.
A sense of shared ownership, where people feel their voices matter.
Stronger trust and relationships between patients, carers, and professionals.

But this approach also asks us to look closely at how power and decision-making are shared. Are people with lived experience truly shaping what happens or only being consulted once the direction is already set?

Listening to the Patient Voice

For many patients and family carers, experiences with health and social care can be complex and sometimes painful. True co-production helps rebuild trust by recognising people as equal partners, not just “service users”. It’s about moving from doing things to people to doing things with them.

To make this real, we need to ask:

Who is involved and who is missing? The voices of the least heard are often those who could offer the most insight
How are people’s contributions recognised? Are they thanked, paid, or credited for their time and expertise
Where does power really sit? Shared decision-making must go beyond consultation to genuine influence

Patients’ voices should not only inform projects but shape long-term culture change. When lived experience is at the centre, it becomes harder for systems to drift away from what truly matters — compassion, dignity, and respect.

From Co-production to Co-creation

Perhaps the future lies in thinking beyond co-production and towards co-creation. Creating something new together, not just improving what already exists. It invites collaboration that’s ongoing, inclusive, and accountable.

With this in mind let’s keep the focus on partnership, equality, and the patient voice. Co-production works best when everyone involved feels heard, respected, and empowered to make change together.

Ready to work together?

Find out how we can support your patients and their family and friend unpaid carers or team through training, consultancy or coaching. Let’s talk about what you need.