The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has released a Foundational Specification to support the procurement of social care Case Management Systems (CMSs). Developed in partnership with BetterGov, the Specification is the outcome of a multi-stage consultation process involving a wide range of stakeholders. Its primary aim is to simplify the procurement journey for Local Authorities by providing a clear and consistent guide—helping to reduce the time, cost, and resources required when selecting new CMSs.

Contributors to this work included representatives from local authorities across the country, current and prospective system suppliers, and organisations such as the Department for Education (DfE), Crown Commercial Service (CCS), Care Quality Commission (CQC), Partners in Care and Health (PCH), Local Government Association (LGA), Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS), and Client Level Data (CLD), among others.

The Foundational Specification is not mandatory. Local Authorities are encouraged to use it flexibly, selecting the elements most relevant to their procurement processes.

The guidance is intended to support and streamline procurement, while allowing for adaptation to local context and needs. The guidance will be temporarily hosted on the Operating Model Toolkit microsite on Knowledge Hub until the end of 2025, after which it will be permanently available on the Digitising Social Care (DiSC) website.

The final Foundational Specification guidance has Part 1 incorporated within it, produced in 2024, and it is included here for reference. Local authorities should utilise the final version titled 'Foundational Specification' below.

On 18 September 2025, ADASS hosted a webinar presentation with BetterGov and DHSC on Procuring your next adult social care case management system using the Foundational Specification (PDF). Local authorities can access a recording of this session and its Q&A below.

For any feedback, please email the project inbox Foundational Specification Guidance FoundationalSpecification@dhsc.gov.uk.