|
A key principle underpinning the preparation and delivery of Community Strategies is successful partnership working and community involvement throughout the process. To achieve this, the Government recommends the establishment of Local Strategic Partnerships, a single body that:
- brings together at a local level the different parts of the public sector as well as the private, business, community and voluntary sectors so that different initiatives and services support each other and work together;
- is a non-statutory, non-executive organisation;
- operates at a level which enables strategic decisions to be taken and is close enough to individual neighbourhoods to allow actions to be determined at community level; and
- should be aligned with local authority boundaries.
Public, private, community and voluntary sector organisations all have a part to play in improving quality of life and the more they can work together, with local people, the more they can achieve. LSPs act as an "umbrella" for many existing partnerships and groups and bring key organisations together to identify top community priorities and to work with local people to address them.
Prior to April 2006, there were seven LSPs in Cheshire, a countywide LSP known as The Cheshire Partnership and six district-based LSPs. From March 2001, The Cheshire Partnership (which comprised around 60 organisations) worked closely on delivering identified priorities contained within the first Cheshire Community Strategy published in February 2002. However, in response to the increasing emphasis and importance being placed on LSPs by Government, not least their role in the development, negotiation and delivery of Local Area Agreements, a review of partnership arrangements across the county was undertaken. This review has resulted in the development of a new Cheshire Partnerships Framework which came into effect in April 2006.
The new Framework attempts to strengthen effective and co-ordinated partnership working at strategic and local levels in a sustainable way. In a two-tier area, this ensures joint ownership of both the Cheshire-wide and district work programmes. The new Framework comprises a number of elements including a new Communities of Cheshire Partnership and Governance Board working alongside the existing six District LSPs, as well as a number of Cheshire-wide and District-based thematic partnerships around:-
- safer and stronger communities
- children and young people
- healthier communities and older people
- economic development and enterprise
- environment and sustainability issues
- other issues as they arise and are agreed.
A Model of the Framework reflects the linkages throughout and the modes of operation of the partnerships within (e.g. commissioning, delivering, advisory). In addition, an Agreement and Protocols document has been agreed by partners for effective partnership working. |
|