Governance and Partnerships

Audit Committee Member Workshop: 21 January 2010

Appendix 1

Overall aim

To develop an efficient and consistent approach for partner bodies and Local Strategic Partnerships to both gain and provide relevant assurance that their governance arrangements are robust.

An introduction toLocal Strategic Partnerships

Audit Committee Member Workshop: Governance and Partnerships: 21 January 2010

Index

What is a Local Strategic Partnership (LSP)

What is it’s role and responsibilities Southend Together – an example

family! Governance & funding The risks

What is a Local Strategic Partnership (LSP)

In simplest terms:

An LSP is an agreement between the public sector agencies within an area to work together with the private, voluntary and community sectors to improve the quality of life for people to live, work and play in that area.

The Partnership’s Role

SustainableCommunityStrategy 2007-2017

Local Area Agreement 2008-11

and responsibilities?

Leadership and governing role - identifying and articulating the needs and aspirations of local communities and reconciling or arbitrating between competing interests.

Community consultation - Coordinate and monitor community consultation and engagement activities of individual partners and, where appropriate, combine them.

Oversee the planning and alignment of resources - Alignment resources in the area to deliver the sustainable community strategies and LAA, achieve more effective and efficient commissioning and ultimately better outcomes.

Performance manage progress - Review and challenge performance of the priorities and targets agreed in the SCS & LAA and ensure delivery arrangements are in place.

Safer Comm-unities

Stronger Comm-

unities

Safer & Stronger

Enterprise & Community Environment

Health & Wellbeing

Children & Young People

ST Performance Management Group

Cross Partnership Working Groups

Data Observatory Internal Audit Consultation and Engagement Community Cohesion Communications Area Based Grant/Procurement Equalities

Partnership Advisory Network

ST Executive

Police NAPs

Turning Tides

Elected members

Faith Groups,

Tenants & Residents Assoc

Children’s Centres

SOUTHEND TOGETHER BOARD

Renaissance Southend

Thames Gateway Partnership

Regional Cities EastSAVs

Further/Higher EducationSEEC

UniversityAdult Colleges

Community Safety Agencies

PoliceProbation Service

Fire & Rescue

Local Authority

Southend Borough Council PART TN EE AR MSHIP

Disability Forum

Older People Forum

Ethnic Minority Forum

Carers Forum

CYP Forum

Membership of Vol & Community GPs

GEO- GRAPHICAL DIMENSION

COMMUNITY

FORUM

BUSINESS &

PRIVATE SECTOR

Business networks

Business & Tourism Partnership

Health AgenciesNHS SEE

Southend HospitalSEPT

Southend Together – an example family

VOLUNTARY &

COMMUNITY SECTOR

Voluntary & Community Groups

STATUTORY SECTOR

Under review

Sustainable Community Strategy

To be a borough that has a safer, more accessible and affordable means of getting about, which supports the potential for regeneration and growth;

To provide visionary leadership and enable inclusive, active and effective participation by individuals and organisations;

To create a safer community for all; To be recognised as the cultural capital of the East of England; To create a thriving and sustainable local economy, which extends

opportunity for local residents and promotes prosperity throughout the borough;

To continue improving outcomes for all children and young people; To protect the borough for current and future generations and to remain an

attractive place for residents, businesses and visitors; To provide opportunities, support and information to people of all ages and

abilities to enable them to take responsibility for their health and choose a healthy lifestyle;

To be a borough with decent housing, in safe and attractive residential areas, that meets the needs of those who want to live here.

9 ambitions

Strengthening the local economy

Raising aspirations and achievement

Making a safer place to live

Leading a cohesive community

Tackling health inequalities

Safeguarding a high quality, sustainable environment

Revitalising Southend’s image

LAA 2008-11 priorities

35 targets from National Indicator Set 19 ‘local’ targets

Governance & accountability

Board - Leader of the Council = Chair, 17 partner agencies, 5 Community Forum strands, Faith Forum, Elected Members, MPs, regional body reps (e.g. Highways Agency)

Exec – SBC – Leader & Chief Exec; PCT – Chair & Chief Exec; Essex Police – Assistant Chief Constable &

Divisional Commander; SAVS – Chief Officer;

Performance Management Group Chaired by Deputy Leader

Funding

LSPs are non-statutory bodies and as such are not able to spend public money, enter into contracts or employ staff, other than through one of the partner bodies in the partnership.

LSP’s attract no real funding of their own and rely on strong relationship management to realign individual agencies resources and assets accordingly for the best needs of the area (Total Place).

They can attract: Specific grant funding for joint activity £m reward for achieving ‘stretch’ targets by 2010

(LAA 2007)

The Partnership and CAA

CAA focuses on… Quality of life for local people Priority setting that demonstrates genuine

understanding of drivers local need Participation and engagement – more and

better quality Delivery of agreed LAA and SCS improvement

priorities in partnership How well partnerships work to deliver very local

cross cutting targets and initiatives outside of the LAA and SCS

Duty to involve private and third sector bodies in delivering services

Areas of risk for any LSP:

Poor delivery of reward grant (stretch) targets

Ineffective use of assets & resources Poor engagement with communities Inadequate data quality and data

sharing Poor accountability and performance

management Weak joint working

Questions?

Lysanne Eddy,Partnership Manager, Southend Together

E: lysanneeddy@southend.gov.ukT: 01702 215111

Local Strategic Partnerships: What assurance are we looking for?

Audit Committee Member Workshop: Governance and Partnerships: 21 January 2010

Local Strategic Partnerships Are not statutory entities

Are not required to report annually on governance arrangements

Do not have an equivalent audit committee type function

Are an increasingly important service delivery mechanism

Significant Partners

Produce annual Governance Statements or Statements of Internal Control

Are subject to the Audit Commission’s annual organisational assessments

Remain accountable for service provision regardless of how it is delivered e.g.: By partnership working Via contracts with the private sector Via contracts with other significant public sector

bodies e.g. NHS Trusts and Housing Arms Length Management Organisation?

So what assurance do we need?Significant

partnersSignificant

partnersAssurance flow?

Do we need to include private sector contractors and significant public sector contractors within this assurance loop?

Local Strategic

Partnerships

Councils

NHS South East Essex

Essex Police Authority

Essex County Fire and Rescue

Service

Councils

NHS South East Essex

Essex Police Authority

Essex County Fire and Rescue

Service

Significant partners need to provide assurance that:

Relevant service risks are being mitigated

Information is appropriately managed

Data quality is good

Performance information is robust

Business continuity / emergency planning is up to date and regularly tested

Local Strategic Partnerships need to provide assurance that:

They consults effectively

Partnership targets are clearly defined

Performance and risk management arrangements are robust and effective

Their decision making arrangements are reasonable and effective

Complaints are dealt with promptly and fairly

So what are the risks? Potential duplication as each partner:

requests the same assurance from each other designs different processes for doing this

Assurance available will be incomplete

Different expectations regarding standards required

Different assessments produced of key strategic partnerships / LSPs arrangements

Good practice is not shared

How could we do this?Require our LSPs to: Adopt a Code of Governance?

Produce periodic reports on the robustness of their governance arrangements?

Produce an annual governance statement?

Produce an annual third party assurance statement covering key business processes?

Share results of independent assessments / inspections of partners?

What could internal audit do? Assess the adequacy of partnership working

arrangements in each partner organisation - and share this?

Work together across the partners to: assess the adequacy and effectiveness of

the LSPs governance arrangements? review areas where service improvements

could be made by better joint working (Total Place)

share good practice

Is there a role for an audit committee? Across LSPs, for an informal audit

committee forum to set expectations, establish common standards, share learning opportunities?

Within your LSP structure to focus on governance arrangements?

Questions

What assurance do we require from: each other our LSPs significant contractors (NHS Trusts,

South Essex Homes, private firms) What assurance should we be providing to

our LSPs? How are we going to do this? Is there a role for a cross LSP audit

committee forum and if so what is it?

Putting individuals and their relationships at the heart of service design…