Relational Contracting in Social Services: A Scoping Review

The contracting out of social services has profoundly reshaped their design and delivery, largely under the influence of New Public Management (NPM) principles that prioritize competition, efficiency, and market-driven procurement. However, NPM-based procurement models have led to significant challenges, with fundamental tensions between NPM’s reliance on competition, outcomes measurement and inspection and the complex, relational and the expertise and discretion nature of social services. Relational contracting has long been discussed as an alternative method of procurement, offering a more collaborative, trust-based approach. Despite its theoretical appeal, there is limited empirical knowledge of how relational contracting operates in practice. This paper addresses this gap through a scoping review. Following Arksey and O’Malley’s framework, it systematically maps the characteristics, processes, and outcomes of relational contracting in social services. The findings highlight several key dimensions: partnership structures that foster shared goals and interdependence, adaptations in competition, dialogue, flexibility and discretion, professionalism and learning. This study offers insights into how relational looks like in reality and calls attention to its potential and limits. The analysis of the reviewed literature underscores both while it provides an alternative to bureaucratic and market-driven models, enhancing adaptability and trust-based relations, it also raises tensions between discretion and accountability, trust and enforcement, professionalism and compliance as well as between collaboration and competition.