Economists, managers and policy-makers should be made to observe how decision making, particularly good decision making in systems that are actually empowering and supportive of that, actually work in practice.

A caveat is that the Conservatives are liable to use this kind of argument for slashing costs. Taking the “care in the community” case as an example they seem historically, at an ideological / economic / public sector level not quite able to see the difference between democracy – which means putting energy into the kind of intelligent and empowering forms of organisation outlined here, which also means up front investment – and anarchy, which is what leaving people to their own devices, without a decent budget and skills resource really amounts to.

With care in the community they took up intelligent arguments for de-institutionalising patients, but failed to make the investments required to really make that work.

It may well happen again, since the UK seems to be short of a Bob or two, and we still seem not to see the dangers ( and costs ) of long-term underinvestment in public goods. But John Seddon is absolutely right, it needs to be done cleverly, and in a democratic and empowering spirit. The Finnish school system us another successful example of a very similar approach of trusting, empowering and supporting the professionals who actually do the job.