160 Partnerships are an essential part of the pattern of public service provision. We believe that public bodies should work in partnership because partnerships bring many benefits that public bodies could not achieve by other means. However, we recognise that partnership working brings governance challenges. To date, central government, its regulators and public bodies have not fully grasped these costs and benefits.
161 Local public bodies need to know why they engage in partnerships and they need to be very honest with themselves and their partners about their individual and collective capacity to govern collaboration effectively. Rather than a headlong rush to partnerships, public bodies should base their decision to enter into and continue in partnership on a sound understanding of the risks and challenges, as well as the anticipated benefits. Where public bodies cannot manage the risks successfully, they should take the appropriate action to strengthen their own and partnerships' governance arrangements. If this is not feasible within the necessary timescale, organisations in voluntary partnerships should judge whether they might reduce the scale of their participation to a level where they reduce the risks.
162 The partnership landscape is complex and not easy to govern. Partnerships have to balance two objectives: they need to innovate to deliver better-quality services and collaborate to make service delivery seamless for the user, and they must protect the public pound at the same time, by managing risks and delivering value for money. Governance arrangements should make clear how partners can work together to achieve these objectives.
163 The form and organisational structures that public bodies use to deliver services is important only in that it helps to maximise benefits to service users and the wider public. If partnerships do not deliver better and more cost-effective services than organisations working separately then they should not continue. This report suggests ways to make this assessment. The Audit Commission will work through its own partnerships with other regulators to ensure that public bodies examine partnerships critically against this criterion.