Local Strategic Partnership Membership Paper

Introduction

Membership of the Local Strategic Partnership is drawn from the senior decision maker(s) in the voluntary, community, private and public sectors.

Members must have the authority to commit their organisations and then influence their organisations in order to deliver that commitment.

Membership - Composition

Partnerships will be represented by their Chairs.

In all other organisations the LSP member will be the senior decision maker.

The Local Authority's members will be the Chief Executive, Deputy Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council.

In the case of bodies covering an area wider than North East Lincolnshire, the member may be the most senior officer in North East Lincolnshire, or the officer nominated by that body, where that person has the authority referred to above delegated to them.

In exceptional cases, an organisation can nominate a member, other than the senior decision maker, if the organisation is willing to delegate authority to that person AND the nomination is acceptable to the Partnership.

Membership belongs to the post rather than the person (this also applies to the named substitute).  Members will notify the Chair of changes to the Chair or Senior Decision Maker posts.  In cases where members also represent important sectors or areas of expertise, the Partnership may wish to consider inviting the person to stay in a different capacity.

The composition of the Partnership  has been informed by:

A	The need to include members from the voluntary, community, private and public sectors.  (Working together - examining use of resources).
B	To include the main service providers / commissioners from all sectors and include the voice of service recipients.  (Joined up and responsive services).
C	To include where possible expertise on the hard to reach groups, potentially excluded groups and to ensure that different perspectives / cultures are included.  (To aid inclusiveness and quality of work undertaken).
D	To include the Chairs of the major partnerships and links into other partnerships and networks.  (Re the co-ordination of partnerships role).
E	Taking into account likely priorities of the Community Strategy.
F	Taking into account the nature of the area, and the needs of the LSP, e.g. expertise in communication.

Substitution

Members are required to attend every meeting of the LSP and to make attendance a priority.  To facilitate this the dates of meetings will be set in advance.

In exceptional circumstances where a member is unable to attend, they can apply, in advance of the meeting, to the Chair to be represented by a substitute.

Each organisation will be asked to name one person from their organisation who will be their substitute.  Chairs of partnerships are expected to nominate the Deputy Chair.  The named substitute will attend with the delegated authority of the member.  If the named substitute is not available the organisation will not be represented.

Substitutions will be monitored by the Secretariat to ensure that they remain exceptions rather than the rule.

Member's Role

Members are the champions of the Community Strategy.  Members will monitor and report back progress / problems in relation to their organisation's / partnership's contribution to achieving the Strategy.

Members have a key role to play to ensure that the Local Strategic Partnership is a Partnership of organisations and partnerships rather than individuals.  Members are the conduits for a two way process of communication:

Members must ensure that they make their whole organisations / partnerships / networks aware of what the Partnership is trying to achieve, to gain their commitment to the priorities and desired results from the Community Strategy.

Members will consult with their organisations / partnerships / networks to get their input into the decisions made by the Partnership.

Members from the Community and Voluntary Sectors are members of the Partnership in one of two capacities, either as:

Service Providers
  or
For their expertise and knowledge of the impact of service provision on local people.

Member's Role

Improve standards of services to the local community and make them more responsive to local needs and priorities.

Take an active involvement in developing the Community Strategy and the work of the Partnership, contributing the experience and expertise of their organisations / partnerships.

Make better use of existing mainstream resources by  joining up and co-ordinating activities with other organisations / partnerships.

Align policies / strategies / service delivery and resources in line with the Community Strategy.

Commit resources in line with the Community Strategy.

Act to meet the ambitions of the local community by: Identifying what your partnership / organisation can contribute to achieving the aims of the Community Strategy Identifying and removing obstacles to the achievement of the Community Strategy

Determine a best fit of the local agenda against national policy/requirements

Improve partnership arrangements

Training

Training for memberships of the Local Strategic Partnership will be developed based around building Common Purpose.  Training and membership development events are provided around issues and principles such as:

Partnership working - consensus building techniques, team working, dealing with conflict
Common purpose - visioning, establishing baselines, target setting
Sustainable development principles
Performance management and monitoring

New members will be briefed by the Secretariat in an induction bringing them up to date with the origin and purpose of the partnership and progress to date.

Review of Membership

The first formal membership review will be carried out in 2003/4 following the publication of the Community Strategy in April 2003.

Membership will then be reviewed on an annual basis by the Partnership and in the interim where new agencies are created / applications received.