Participatory budgeting at scale: Mainstreaming PB for service commissioning and investment

A refreshed 2025 guide aimed at helping local authorities and public bodies in the UK transition from small-scale grant-making to mainstreaming participatory budgeting (PB) as a tool for large-scale service commissioning and investment.

This guide updates the 2016 original to reflect current branding and refreshed international and UK case studies. It distinguishes between "grant-making PB" (small pots for community groups) and "mainstream PB" (devolving decision-making powers over core public service budgets). The guide advocates for a co-productive mindset that values the lived expertise of community members over traditional "top-down" commissioning.

It serves as a strategic and operational manual for public sector leaders, commissioners, and elected members. The guide provides six practical mainstream PB options (e.g., Budget Matrix, Deliberative Open Budgeting, Top-slicing) and signposts to successful models in Scotland and abroad to help public bodies design effective, inclusive, and transparent resource allocation processes.

Source: Shared Future CIC
Language: English

Author: Jez Hall

Year of publication: 2025