Developing an effective collaboration for south east Essex
We worked with the newly formed South East Essex Alliance to help them find common purpose and develop an effective approach to collaboration.
The challenge
With a combined population of 370,000, four local authorities and eight primary care networks, the South East Essex Alliance needed a development programme that would bring together colleagues from a complex landscape.
We knew that the Alliance was working in an environment with constant change and high levels of uncertainty. So the development programme needed to create a shared identity and ways of working for the Alliance that could withstand change and support them both now, and in the future.
Our approach
Using the Kaleidoscope Eight characteristics of effective collaborations framework as a starting point, we aimed to establish a clear shared purpose that could inform a set of joint priorities and action. Our goal was to foster trusting relationships so Alliance members could collaborate and work to their full potential.
We worked with the Alliance to co-create a development programme that was shaped and owned by members. We became an extension of the Alliance team, working closely with members and the support team to design a four stage process:
- Firm foundations
The Alliance had already done some great work, including interviews with partners. Working with the support team, we helped map the data to our evidence-based ‘Eight characteristics of effective collaborations’ diagnostic framework. We then brought the whole Alliance together for a day to explore the results, surfacing the stories beneath the data and identifying which of the characteristics they wanted to improve on to make the biggest difference. Members chose to focus on developing a clearer purpose-driven strategy and more robust ways to measure and improve. - Plan
We co-designed a new purpose, mission and vision for the Alliance through a face-to-face summit. We also drew on learning and best practice from similar collaborations across the country to develop a set of decision-making criteria. Those criteria were then used to agree a number of projects for the Alliance to work on together. These efforts were underpinned by conversations to increase connection, understanding and trust. - Do and learn
We provided flexible coaching and guidance to Alliance members and the support team as they began to test and learn from their agreed projects. This included identifying the need to build capacity and capability in telling a common ‘Alliance Story’ externally. To enable this, we delivered a narrative development and story-telling workshop to shape and practise telling a joined-up story that could engage and inspire key stakeholders, from councillors and CEOs to commissioners. - Act
Finally, we brought members together to explore the lessons from the development activity. This included agreeing which initiatives to adopt and scale, which to test further or retire, and to identify priorities for the next development cycle.
The results
The process enabled the Alliance to develop, both through intentional conversations that built shared understanding and joint projects that supported learning.
As a result, the collaboration has unlocked major funding opportunities for joint work on health inequalities. It has also made significant progress on plans to establish new health and wellbeing hubs and Primary Care Network Aligned Community Teams.
The South East Essex Alliance is now expanding its membership and developing neighbourhood-level insights that will inform where joint action can make a big difference.
The ‘Alliance Story’, which we supported members to co-create, continues to act as a fixed point, anchoring the Alliance to a shared identity and purpose and enabling the safe expansion of the collaboration.
Kaleidoscope were an authentic, honest and reliable team to work with. The sessions they designed and facilitated were well planned, coordinated and collaborative, and they provided helpful advice and reflections after each session, continually looking for ways to maximise their impact and value. I would recommend Kaleidoscope to other organisations.
Ruth Hallett, Alliance Director for South East Essex, NHS Mid and South Essex
Project team
Ariadne Siotis
George Dellal
Katie Goulding
Shane Carmichael
