Building effective partnerships

Strategic Partnerships are now widespread, associated perhaps with a geographic area, or a particular issue. Primarily they are established in the belief that a partnership approach will achieve more than if the constituent organisations continue working on their own. Yet many people remain sceptical about their real weight, labelling them as 'talking shops' with little real power.

The key to overcoming this scepticism is to make the model work effectively. This means that the partnership body must be able to agree areas for action, and then exert influence, in order to shape the provision of services at the interface with local communities, in a way that meets the real needs of the community. This three-layer structure needs to be well designed in order to be effective, and many variations on this approach exist. It is difficult to identify clearly what works, and come up with a one-size-fits-all solution, however there is value to be gained from exploring successful partnership working, and applying lessons learned as far as possible.

Community Viewfinders have now worked with many LSPs and other strategic initiatives, making detailed assessments of the internal workings of the partnerships, and helping to ultimately make them more effective servants of their respective communities.

Return to top