Partnership working under pressure

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Partnership working under pressure

• Anthony Douglas
• Chief Executive
• Research Conference 27th February 2008

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The rationale for working together
Partnership working is likely to be a major
public sector paradigm for the next 25 years
Collaborative advantage is a key term along
with inter-dependence
Partnership working can be an inspirational
framework for people who use services and
professionals alike
Partnership working is essential in every case
even if the partners are different some core,
some peripheral
Despite its ubiquity, partnership working can
easily become confusing without a clear sense of
purpose
Many partnerships are high maintenance and
often crumble because low maintenance approaches
are used
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Who are the partners?

• The major partnership is with those who use our
  services must have been at the heart of it
  (my case), because I had a care order made, but I
  was never part of it- Jerome
• Internal partnerships are essential, and often
  need to be with several colleagues simultaneously
• External partnerships are essential, and are
  often ineffective because of rampant
  proceduralism
• Teams around a case or a service can make a
  massive difference
• Knowledge and research partnerships have their
  place and their potential is often downplayed

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Building and supporting a partnership
The more complex the case, the more
non-negotiable is partnership working
I am because we are the collective engagement
of peers in South Africa in the process known as
Ubuntu
Contracts, Boards, LSCBs, Childrens Trusts,
multi-agency teams, coalitions, shared services,
co-government and alliances
Partnerships need to go through set stages of
development, if they are to be successfully
sustained
Networks matter as much as hierarchies or
organisations
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Effective partnership working

• The evidence base for partnership working is
  poor, but that is not the whole story
• Proxy measures for partnership working can
  indicate a way forward, when it is too early for
  a formal evaluation
• Positive partnership outcomes can be more easily
  demonstrated in projects than in mainstream
  services
• If a lot of cures are suggested for a disease,
  it means the disease is incurable Chekhov, The
  Cherry Orchard

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Partnership working in Cafcass
Who are the key internal partners?
Who are the key external partners?
What style of partnership working is right with
service users?
How can Cafcass best support improved partnership
working?
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Partnership working under pressure

• Anthony Douglas
• Chief Executive
• Research Conference 27th February 2008