Abstract
In this first of two articles, the authors assess the implications of policy developments in partnership and contestability, commissioning and procurement, and local jurisdiction for adult services joint ventures. They argue for creative responses to service delivery in which policy implementation is seen as an opportunity for local health and social care agencies to honour the history of, and future aspirations for, local partnerships. A second article will detail the very different responses to the policy agenda of four case study sites, exploring the local contours and aspirations underlying their decisions, with the intention of provoking discussion about the art of the possible in the broader community of interest.The papers draw on the authors' work funded by the Integrated Care Network (ICN) and Care Services Improvement (CSIP), which comprised a series of workshops to inform the further development of the plans of four local health and social care communities ‐ Portsmouth, Wolverhampton, Barnsley and Milton Keynes ‐ for commissioning and provision of adult care services, providing a community of interest in which aspirations, challenges and emerging solutions were exchanged and explored. Here we summarise transferable learning for the broader community of interest, drawn from the more detailed reports available from the ICN (Freeman & Peck, 2006, 2007).