Effective partnership working across central and local government along with our Arms’ Length Bodies is key to the planning and delivery of improved outcomes for Northern Ireland’s citizens.
Planning and delivering services with a focus on impact and outcomes, rather than administrative structures, is central to the outcomes delivery plan published by the Executive Office in June 2018, setting out the actions required to give effect to the previous Executive’s stated objective of “Improving wellbeing for all by tackling disadvantage and driving economic growth.” Central and local government working collaboratively with the voluntary and community sector adds value to public services, bringing specialist or local knowledge and links with communities.
Whilst partnership activities in government are not new, they can often be challenging, particularly in relation to governance. In supporting the public sector to collaborate more effectively, the Comptroller and Auditor General, Kieran Donnelly, is launching a Good Practice Guide, aimed at helping public bodies to work more openly and constructively together and with local communities. The Guide is intended to complement current guidance and brings together best practice in partnership working drawn from local, national and international work relevant to the public sector in Northern Ireland.
The Guide looks at the three key areas of scoping, identify and building partnerships; planning, managing and resourcing partnerships and implementing, measuring and reviewing partnerships. It will be launched at an event featuring contributions from:
• Kieran Donnelly, Comptroller and Auditor General;
• Sue Gray, Permanent Secretary, Department of Finance;
• Neil Gray, Director, Northern Ireland Audit Office.
Delegates will also hear from the team managing District Support Hubs, which formalise collaborative working amongst statutory agencies at a local level. The Support Hubs bring together key professionals from up to nine statutory agencies, to share information and make joint decisions to help a person who is vulnerable.
Why you should attend?
• Understand how to better realise the outcomes of the Programme for Government;
• Improve public services through collaborative partnerships;
• Share best practice across the main stages in the lifecycle of a partnership, the barriers and the levers to overcome these;
• Practical examples of effective partnership for outcomes;
• Network with key stakeholders.