Publication – From Big Society to Social Productivity

by Henry Kippin and Ben Lucas

The Big Society has so far been predominantly presented as a vision, what it lacks is a strategy. Ends require means. And it is not yet clear what these will be. In particular, if the Big Society is to be a theory of governance then we need to think through what its implications are for the economy and for the state. Some of the leading advocates of the Big Society have developed an argument for an economy more imbued with social purpose, which implies breaking up cartels such as the banks, a tougher anti-trust style competition regime, greater localization of finance capital, and a move away from the emphasis on short term shareholder value.

But there is very little sense that the Coalition Government has yet adopted anything like a Big Society approach to the economy. There is an increasingly lively debate about the difference between the Good Society and the Big Society, but both are rooted in the view that we need a stronger civil society in which co-operative social institutions are powerful
enough to serve as a counterweight to both the state and the private sector.

As we move into a period during which budget constraint and policy flux will create, real, on the ground change, is it possible to recognize insights into the limitations of top-down service delivery and the ‘hidden wealth’ of citizens, whilst at the same time thinking more seriously about the role of the state? Can we carve a path between the need for more sustainable public services over the long term, and the need for a route-map that is concerned with equality, and that builds the capacities of citizens?

From Big Society to Social Productivity, looks at the forces driving change in public services and asks what are the new opportunities and risks.  What is the new role of the state, what does that mean for the role of business and the thrid sector and how do you manage transition in an unequal society?  The authors suggest a framework and practice for viewing these questions and others; social productivity - developing the ’Three Shifts’ of the Commission on 2020 Public Servcies, putting the citizen at the heart of public services.