48 The example in Appendix 2 illustrates the importance of corporate governance in supporting partnership working. It shows how the poor corporate governance of a partner can impact on the governance of a partnership and ultimately on the partnership's success.
49 Good governance should ensure the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective services, which enhance public trust in and satisfaction with public bodies.(Ref. 10, Ref. 11). In corporate bodies, good governance depends upon an effective mix of hard and soft organisational characteristics. Taken together, these create the conditions for better decision making and effective internal accountability.
50 Hard characteristics include reliable financial data, performance data and risk assessments, which are generated by robust systems and processes and which produce timely and appropriate information for decision makers. The soft factors encompass leadership, which sets the overall objectives, the roles and responsibilities required to achieve them and cultural attributes like openness, honesty and integrity (the Cadbury (Ref. 12) principles). These factors create the right climate for non-executives and others to query, challenge and understand the basis on which decisions are reached.
51 Clear internal accountability provides the basis for effective external accountability to the public and service users. Organisations that get this right can be more confident of providing more innovative services to the public (Case study 1).
Case study 1 Partners speak highly about working with the Council. They consider staff to be professional and high quality and the Chief Executive's leadership style empowering. There are many good examples of partnership working focusing on important issues: • the crime reduction and disorder partnership; • a multi-agency approach to the delivery of children's play schemes, delivering high-quality programmes to over 900 children aged 4-16; • draft Joint Municipal Waste Management Strategy with Surrey County Council and Surrey district councils; • Surrey Scholar waste attitudes research project in partnership with University of Surrey; • joint Waste Awareness Campaign in partnership with Waverley Borough Council; • very sheltered housing in partnership with Surrey County Council; • single assessment process for older people with the PCT and Surrey County Council; • on-street parking management in partnership with Surrey County Council; • Joint Committee on Grant Allocations with Surrey County Council and the PCT; • delivering on the health agenda through walking for health, obesity and coronary heart disease programmes with the Guildford and Waverley PCT, Healthy Living Centre, Health Promotion Partnership, Age Concern Surrey and University of Surrey; and • providing opportunities for young people to develop music skills, through the Live and Direct project with Surrey County Council and the County School, Guildford. A range of partnerships with the private sector also exist, including: • a catering franchise at Guildford Spectrum leisure complex, which had private investment of £250,000 in 2000, £45,000 in 2003 and improved customer service; • housing repairs - the value of the framework agreements operated with local and regional suppliers is £6 million per annum; increasingly this focuses on improving service standards by using key performance indicators; • a demonstration house in partnership with Tunstall Telecom shows how to support people in their home using assistive technology; and • partnership with Aldershot Car Spares for free-of-charge, 24-hour removal of abandoned cars. Source: Audit Commission |