Co-production refers to the delivery of public social services in which people supported by services are involved in their planning, implementation and evaluation. Co-production helps ensure that social services are tailored to personal needs and expectations and promote outcomes of individual autonomy.

Building on our work on community care, disability, and mental health, we organised a seminar in 2019 to analyse the participation of people using services in the planning, delivery and evaluation of social services as a key aspect of service quality. The theme of the 2024 European Social Services Conference is co-creating future social services, focusing on co-producing aspects such as social inclusion, community-care models and digital solutions.