Un-charted Territory? Experiences of the Purchaser/Provider Split in Local Authority Children's Services

¹Ian Kirkpatrick Public Services Research Unit. Cardiff Business School, Aberconway Building, Colum Road, Cardiff CF1 3EU, UK. Summary A primary goal of Conservative government policy, expressedin the 1990 National Health Service and Community Care Act,was to encourage the development of market mechanisms throughthe separation of purchaser and provider roles. The main targetfor reform was to be adult services although, in the absenceof specific guidance, a number of local authorities also implementedpurchaser/provider structures in services for children and families.To date, little attention has been given in the literature eitherto describing what purchaser/provider structures involve inthis context or to assessing their impact. Drawing on case studydata from seven local authorities, this article seeks to addressthese deficiencies. It is argued that many changes have beencosmetic and that, while it is not possible to evaluate thelong-term effectiveness of the model, there is evidence thatit can have some negative consequences for the co-ordinationand delivery of services.