Audit Scotland logo

Good practice guide

Drug and alcohol services

Self-assessment checklist for partners

Case study - Outcome-based service development in West Lothian

West Lothian Alcohol and Drug Action Team (ADAT) has developed a series of stages to help to commission services based on outcome measures.

Stage 1 analysis – building the evidence base. Regular needs assessment and research into what works to provide evidence to inform funding decisions.

Stage 2 planning – specifying the outcomes. A local outcome framework is agreed based on needs assessments. The focus is on the outcomes that providers must achieve and how they will achieve these outcomes is not set out in advance.

Potential service providers submit an outcome specification and an outcome delivery plan records how the provider will achieve the outcomes and what funding is needed to deliver the project. An outcome milestone chart is used to identify key client stages and capacity in the service. All tenders are evaluated against specific criteria..

Stage 3 doing – outcome contracting. Successful providers submit quarterly monitoring templates which are focused on outcomes. All successful providers are also required to complete equality impact assessments, which are reviewed on an ongoing basis.

Back to top