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Terms of Reference

Partnership purpose

To promote a partnership in which all parties understand each other and commit to work together to benefit the people of Poole and those who work and visit here.

What is the Local Strategic Partnership?

Poole Partnership, the Local Strategic Partnership (LSP) for Poole, is a single overarching strategic partnership for the town that brings together the public, private, business, voluntary and community sectors, so that different initiatives and services support each other, working together to more effectively meet the aspirations and needs of local people.

It will take a broad overview of activity in the area and guide strategic planning and decision making, but should be close enough to day-to-day activity across the area to allow actions to be guided by local priorities.

This will be the first time that such a wide range of partners will work together for the benefit of Poole. It is hoped that the richness of their experiences will bring a fresh approach to shaping Poole's future.

Area covered by the Local Strategic Partnership

The area that the LSP serves will not be constrained by artificial boundaries or jurisdictions. To be most effective the LSP will need to operate at a wide enough area to allow strategic choices to be made, but be close enough to individual neighbourhoods and communities.

The area should also reflect the geographical coverage of existing partnerships and enable interaction with neighbouring LSP's.

"Oh no - not another partnership!"

The fundamental role of the LSP is to guide the development and implementation, by all partners, of a Community Strategy that sets out a shared vision for the future of Poole.

The benefits that this Partnership can bring will be to:

bring together partners who do not normally work together to achieve more than they can achieve alone
co-ordinate and simplify existing partnerships and strategies where necessary
enable fresh opportunities to be identified.

Partnership philosophy

We all have a view on what the future may hold. If you could see into the future what would you want Poole to be like in 2010? How can we work together to shape the future so that more of our hopes come about?

If we agree that working together is central to delivering a future for Poole that we all want, then our aim should always be to complement the work of others, not to compete. Poole does not need another partnership working on yet another agenda - the benefit of the LSP will be to add coherence to existing partnership activity enabling it to make a full and meaningful contribution to the future of Poole.

The strength of the LSP will be where it can bring together alliances to face complex challenges - the most difficult problems need the most imaginative solutions and sometimes entirely new approaches. It will bring together people who are not normally in the same room and put emphasis on finding preventative solutions to long-term problems.

We will celebrate achievement through our work and the work of those individuals and organisations that are determined to secure a future for Poole of which we can all be proud.

Partnership principles

The Partnership is based upon the principles of opportunity, inclusion, equality and sustainable development, seeking to:

achieve the full potential of Poole whilst enhancing the richness of our history and environment
recognise and celebrate the many opportunities in Poole and increase the opportunities for everyone to access them
appreciate that we are affected by and affect communities beyond the boundaries of Poole, both nationally and worldwide
ensuring a better quality of life for everyone - now and for generations to come.

'It's easy to get good players - getting them to play together more effectively, that's the hard part'

To work well the Partnership needs to develop:

a shared commitment
clarity about what that commitment means in practice
a process resulting in action and change

Main Aims and Objectives of Poole Partnership

The benefit of forming the Partnership is to realise that "the whole is greater than the sum of the parts". Together we can achieve more.

The main aims and objectives of the Partnership will be to:

Involve the people of Poole in developing a Community Strategy for the area, to include shared vision, priorities and action plans.
Provide opportunities for sharing of information between partners about Poole and its people.
Co-ordinate consultation and community involvement in the development of the Community Strategy.
Ensure that everyone and all sectors, including business and groups more difficult to reach, have their say in the shaping and implementation of the Strategy.
Ensure that the priorities of the community are reflected in the Strategy.
Bring people together in new ways to achieve solutions to challenges we face.
Influence and encourage streamlining of other strategic plans and partnerships that affect Poole.
Agree Action Plans arising from the Community Strategy, identify how these will be delivered and monitor their implementation.
Ensure that the Strategy remains relevant and continues to impact on the community.
Work as a Partnership, that is effectively led by and accountable to local people.
Keep track of progress and report regularly on this to the community.
Publish and celebrate the achievements of the partners and the Strategy.

To achieve these objectives it will need to:

Value the contribution of all partners, avoiding domination by particular members or organisations and achieving wide representation.
Provide a forum for debate, discussion, and common decision-making.
Build common purpose and shared commitment.
Develop a variety of means to work with and consult local people, including faith and minority communities.
Develop and publicise common aims and priorities.
Share local information and good practice.
Identify, encourage and support effective local initiatives.
Support the empowerment of local communities.
Co-ordinate monitoring and communication of the Community Strategy and Action Plan(s).
Form a Steering Group of representatives who have influence and resources, with the breadth of representation to be able to deliver the whole vision and who are able to think "outside the box".

Poole Partnership

The Partnership will include all groups and organisations which have an interest in the future of the Borough. The Partnership will meet at least annually to discuss progress on the Community Strategy, have input into its development ensuring it remains relevant.

The main functions of the Partnership will be to:

help shape the Community Strategy
communicate through their groups and networks throughout the process of developing the Community Strategy
review progress
ensure that the Strategy remains relevant to the community
identify possible actions for each year and their contributions to them.

Poole Partnership Steering Group

The Steering Group will steer the development of the Community Strategy process and have responsibility for its management. It will meet on alternate months and will refer to the wider Partnership as necessary to ensure a wide ownership of the Community Strategy.

Members of the Steering Group will need to be able to:

take a strategic view, considering the long-term sustainable development of the whole Borough
speak with authority in support of their sector orstrategicservice partnership
reflect the priorities and goals of their own sector or strategic service partnership
exert influence within their own strategic service service partnership or organisation to shape decisions, commit resources, adjust priorities and deliver the necessary changes to frontline service delivery
resolve problems and tensions between partners to ensure that the objectives of the Partnership are met.

The role of the Steering Group in its initial stages will be to:

champion and communicate the work of the Partnership
develop a variety of means to work with and consult local people, including faith, black and minority ethnic communities
make the Partnership a genuine living, breathing partnership enabling it to grow and develop over time.

Steering Group Membership

Richard Dimbleby - Chair (independent)
Christopher Beale - Poole Council for Voluntary Service
Barnaby Quaddy - Federation of Small Businesses (Poole, Wessex Region)
David Luckhurst - Government Office for the South West
Roger Boyce - Poole Town Centre Management Board
Ron Curtis - Environment Agency
Neal Butterworth - Echo & Advertiser Series
Nick Hazelton - Dorset Police
vacant - Poole Tourism Panel
Chris Harris - Wilts & Dorset
Michael Henson - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (Cultural representative)
Bruce Voss - South West Regional Development Agency
Brian Leverett - Borough of Poole (Council Leader)
Jonathan Martin - Faith Groups
John McBride - Borough of Poole (Chief Executive)
Adrian Dawson - Poole Primary Care Trust
John Nash - Children & Young People's Strategic Partnership
Sarah Hughes - Bournemouth, Dorset & Poole Learning & Skills Council
Mahmuda Shipa Khatun - Poole Youth Forum
Peter Scott - Dorset Business
David Shire - Dorset Race Equality Council
Adrian Crook - Dorset Fire & Rescue
John Sprackling - Residents', Tenants' and Community Associations
Andrew Williams - Connexions across Bournemouth, Dorset & Poole
Tim Thornton - Diocese of Salisbury
Justin Williams - Poole Youth Forum

Secretariat

The Secretariat is provided by the Borough of Poole, reflecting the statutory responsibility of the Borough for producing and delivering a Community Strategy. Contact can be made on poolepartnership@poole.gov.uk

Chair

The Chair is an independent person, appointed by the Steering Group, initially for a two-year period.

Good leadership should inspire vision, enthusiasm and commitment. The Chair will command the trust ofall partners, including the community. Prerequisites for the post are charisma, clout and commitment, time and vision.

Equalities Statement

Partnership Principles:

The Partnership is based on the principles of opportunity, inclusion, equality and sustainable development, seeking to:

Achieve the full potential of Poole
Recognise and celebrate the many opportunities in Poole and increase the opportunities for everyone to access them
Appreciate that we are affected by and affect communities beyond the boundaries or Poole, both nationally and worldwide
Ensure a better quality of life for everyone now and for generations to come

Equalities and Social Inclusion statement

Poole Partnership will ensure that equalities and tackling social inclusion is central to and underpins all its work, including though its sub-groups and associated Partnerships.

The Partnership recognises and accepts that:

Oppression, disadvantage and discrimination exists in society
Some people experience unequal access to services and/or employment
Discrimination, disadvantage and poverty affect the quality of life and life chances of people in Poole
People can and do experience multiple discrimination

The Partnership will act collectively in a leadership role to deliver equality of opportunity to all and improve outcomes for those who are socially excluded. The Partnership will work towards removing direct and indirect barriers which exclude people from political, economic, social and cultural experiences and opportunities. It will aim to enable all Poole's residents to participate and have confidence in the decision-making process of the Partnership.

The Partnership will work towards creating and sustaining a Poole where:

Community spirit is high and we all respect diversity and care for one another
Poole people want to develop a better understanding of each others' culture & needs

Poole Partnership will implement and monitor by:

Acting within the spirit and letter of the law.
Mainstreaming equalities and tackling social exclusion through the delivery of the Communications and Community Engagement Strategy.
Using the framework of the Equality Standard to undertake an Equality Impact Assessment on the Communications and Community Engagement Strategy and Action Plan.
Actively encouraging and engaging individuals, groups and communities whose voices have not traditionally been heard in decision-making so that they influence Poole Partnership.
Organising meetings, processes and information so that they are accessible to all.
Building equalities criteria into funding regimes.
Promoting information sharing and best practice to develop new skills and information for tackling inequalities and social exclusion.
Raising awareness about equality issues facing Poole and promoting the action the Partnership and partners are taking to address them.
Building the confidence of individuals, businesses, community and other agencies by tackling barriers to involvement and encouraging wider participation in decision making, initiatives and actions.
Establishing an Equalities Action Group, to monitor Poole Partnership’s achievement against these commitments.

Poole Partnership will encourage all its partners to:

Work to mainstream equalities and tackle social inclusion, both in terms of employment practice and service delivery.
Adopt Equalities Standard for Local Government or relevant equivalent Standard; agree a timeframe for achieving the first level; and undertake impact assessments on relevant service change proposals, particularly arising through delivering the Community Strategy

Equality Statement adopted: September 2005 (to be reviewed annually)

People affected by equalities issues are black and minority ethnic people, disabled people, women, older people, young people, Lesbian, Gay, bi-sexual and transgender people and those from different religious beliefs or faith communities.