How Do We Understand Partnership Working? Experiences from a Telecare Project

Implementing telecare requires experience and knowledge from different disciplines and sectors; business, technology and care. The uptake of telecare has been slow, which is assumed to be caused by difficulties in co‐operation within telecare partnerships. This article presents a new approach to improve understanding of telecare partnerships. The approach builds on theories of trust and partnership working and is informed by rational choice theory. Within this article the approach is applied to recent experiences from a telecare project in Norway, to demonstrate how different ways of interpreting the complex social interactions in telecare partnerships yield new insight and understanding. Examples from the Norwegian project illustrate how different understandings of actions and choices affected trust and caused either improved or deteriorated co‐operation in the partnership. The partners that were able to develop trust through a common evaluation of the problems co‐operated better. However, when partners lacked or had insufficient knowledge, either of each other or of the situation, this led to disparate understandings that threatened trust and affected further co‐operation. The new approach presented here is helpful in analyzing and understanding the actions of different partners within a telecare partnership and identifying why things worked well or went wrong. The approach may have wider relevance for other partnerships.     

Trust, risk and control within an indigenous–non-indigenous social service partnership

Partnerships between organisations are seen as one of the building blocks of the 'third way' approach to welfare provision in both Europe and New Zealand. While there is much discussion on building social capital and partnership working, such partnerships are usually perceived as being between government and community or private organisations. There is a gap in the literature in two specific areas: partnerships formed between two community-based social service organisations and partnerships formed between indigenous, or immigrant peoples, and non-indigenous organisations. This article explores such a partnership – that between the Ngai Tahu Maori Law Centre (an indigenous organisation) and the Dunedin Community Law Centre (a non-indigenous organisation). The article analyses this relationship and strategies employed by both organisations to develop trust, diminish risk and equalise control. Lastly, the article suggests that the model of interaction articulated here could be promulgated to other sites within the social services in New Zealand and the Americas, and within the European context.     

Does partnership funding improve coordination and collaboration among early childhood services? – Experiences from the Communities for Children programme

Partnerships among service providers are an important aspect of human service delivery, including in the early childhood and family service sector. There is extensive international literature on factors contributing to partnerships – also termed service coordination, collaboration or integration – but little evidence of partnership outcomes exists where partnerships are a funded and mandatory component of large‐scale programmes. This paper reports findings from an evaluation of the Australian Government's Communities for Children (CfC) programme. Under CfC, partnerships were mandated and funded, and the evaluation findings show that the programme resulted in an increased number of agencies working together to support families with young children (0–5 years) and that working relationships between agencies improved. The effectiveness of these partnerships depended on funding for partnership activities and on organisational and practical factors.     

Taking the class to the community with service-learning: gerontological macro social work practice

In an effort to infuse gerontological content throughout a BSW curriculum, the College of Mount St. Joseph developed community partnerships with agencies that serve older adults. These partnerships led to specific "out-of-class" assignments in a macro social work practice class using a service-learning approach. The development and implementation of those assignments in the agency settings are described using Polvika's Conceptual Model for Community Interagency Collaboration. The successful outcomes are described in terms of the community partnership, services and benefits provided, and the degree of satisfaction by the agencies, students, and faculty with this pedagogical method.     

Partnerships, Power and the "New" Politics of Community Participation in British Health Care

Multi–sectoral approaches to health improvement in its broadest sense have entailed an emphasis by the British government upon partnership working in and around community involvement in planning processes. New service planning and delivery organizations in the health service—primary care groups and primary care trusts—thus have to ensure that public and patient involvement strategies reflect a coordinated, if not integrated, multi–sectoral approach to such involvement. But how are these enforced partnership arrangements shaping the approach taken by primary care groups and trusts to the issue of public and patient involvement? More particularly, is the traditional dominance of health service managers and the medical profession in decision–making processes under challenge? This article draws on a study of primary care groups and trusts in three districts in order to gauge perceptions and calculations with regard to partnerships for involvement. Results appear to suggest that health service managers and practitioners continue to exercise considerable influence in comparison to that of patients and citizens. But, if the findings are viewed in the broader contexts of government managerialist strategies of surveillance and accountability and the growth of service–user and advocacy organizations, partnerships may offer significant scope for “lay” challenges to managerial and medical power.     

The Theory and Practice of Welfare Partnerships: The Case of the Cultural Sector

Partnership working in the welfare state has moved from the margins to the mainstream in terms of achieving policy objectives. Drawing on interdisciplinary theoretical and empirical developments in the field, this article presents a framework for analyzing welfare partnerships that give precedence to the issues of trust and interdependence. This article presents findings from a study of local authority museum services in Scotland, England and Wales to test this framework. A series of case studies revealed that partnerships have been driven by a number of factors including policy, power, funding and people. Partnerships could gain services credibility, but trust and interdependence were compromised by conflictual and unequal relationships. Partnerships were often short term, lacked ongoing maintenance plans and limited by their type of funding. The article proposes that further analysis of the level of individual agency at ground level be considered when thinking about partnerships in the cultural sector.     

Inter‐agency Cooperation and New Approaches to Employability

This article examines the role of inter‐agency cooperation, which is one form of ‘partnership’, in new approaches to employability in the UK. The article articulates a ‘model for effective partnership working’ on employability. This model is applied first in a general review of employability policy and then to discuss case study research on the recent ‘Pathways to Work’ and ‘Working Neighbourhoods’ pilots. It is argued that successful partnerships need a clear strategic focus based on a necessity for inter‐agency cooperation and institutional arrangements that allow for shared ownership, trust and mutualism, and flexibility in resource‐sharing. While some of these factors are apparent in UK employability services, an over‐reliance on contractualism and centralized organizational structures may undermine partnership‐based approaches. Many of the success factors associated with effective partnership working appeared to be in place, even though the role of the Public Employment Service was fundamentally different in each case (as a key actor in implementing the first pilot, but largely withdrawing from the implementation role in the second). The article concludes by outlining the relevance of this model and the case study findings to discussions of the future development of employability policies and related partnership working.     

Using Groups to Advance Social Work Practice–Based Research

A discussion about the importance of research for social work practitioners and the nature of academic–practitioner partnerships set the scene in this article for a discussion about an innovative academic–practitioner partnership. This partnership, aimed at strengthening research mindedness and research activity in social service settings, has been fuelled by a belief in the power of groups to achieve what individuals cannot. The authors reflect on the range of inputs and synergistic group processes that allowed for a series of outcomes that would not have been possible within an individualized initiative. In conclusion, lessons learned from the use of groups to advance practice-based research are outlined.     

Challenging passive partnerships with parents and children in the core group forum: a framework for a proactive approach

This paper looks at two concepts central to effective child protection practice: partnerships and the core group system, which need to work together if we are to improve the worrying, ad hoc approaches to child protection work once a child's name has been added to the child protection register. These concepts emerged at around the same point in time, but little has been written about the core group, even though it has been given the key tasks of formulating, implementing and reviewing the child protection plan, and forging effective working partnerships with other professionals, parents/carers and their children ( Calder 1991, 1995 b; Calder & Horwath 1999 ). Whilst the concept of partnership has received considerable media and publishing attention, no previous paper has explored partnerships with families within the core group phase. This reflects the low priority currently afforded to activity following the initial child protection conference, and arguably sets the core group up to fail, even before it has started ( Calder 1996a, 1998 ). The authors draw on their national research into core group practice to explore the notion of partnerships between the core group and parents, carers and children, concluding with some recommendations on how Area Child Protection Committees can create the environment in which we can move from passive to proactive partnerships within a higher profile for this stage and focus of the work. The authors draw on some suggestions from Messages from Research ( Department of Health 1995a ) and from several small-scale research studies into core group practice.     

Voluntary Organizations as New Street‐level Bureaucrats: Frontline Struggles of Community Organizations against Bureaucratization in a South Korean Welfare‐to‐Work Partnership

In recent years, the role of voluntary organizations in welfare partnership has received considerable critical attention from scholars working in the field. While mainstream debates have valued state–voluntary sector partnership as participatory governance, critical studies have argued that it leads voluntary organizations to serve as a shadow state. The present study, however, contends that partnership does not necessarily entail participatory welfare or the complete subordination of the voluntary sector to the state's bureaucratic system. Rather, as new street‐level bureaucrats, voluntary organizations can exercise a degree of autonomy on the frontline despite the bureaucratic constraints engendered by partnership. Through an ethnographic analysis of Korean community organizations engaged as frontline agencies in a welfare‐to‐work partnership, this study unveils how the former have recreated democratic and inclusive environments in a particular policy setting by organizing non‐work activities and transferring administrative authority to recipients. Delineating such street‐level practices, this article demonstrates that state–voluntary sector partnerships may be sites of struggle where voluntary organizations continuously strive to actualize participatory governance in diverse and indirect ways.     

"Not prepared to care" and "raising the bar": case examples of building university-community partnerships in gerontological social work research

This paper examines university-community partnerships in gerontological social work research. Utilizing a case study approach, the process of collaboration is explored within the context of a two-phase research project conducted jointly by agency social workers, social work students and a social work faculty member. The benefits and challenges of the university-community research partnership are discussed along with the implications for gerontological social work research, education and practice.     

Partners in Evaluation: Modelling Quality in Partnership Projects

The concept of partnership as a way of describing relationships between public, private and voluntary agencies can take many forms. The evaluation of quality in the delivery of services by these partnerships is recognized as complex given the differing perspectives not only of the two partners but of the various other stakeholders, including service users, and the potential for added value arising from the partnership itself. This paper focuses on the partnership arrangements between Probation Services and voluntary agencies, identifying the specific characteristics of partnerships in the field of crime management. Drawing on research undertaken for one Probation Service the paper explores the concepts of value for money, inputs, outputs, outcomes and quality, and their measurement in partnership projects. A model is then offered for the more effective evaluation of projects where two different agencies are involved and a practice example is attached.     

The Intersubjective Action of Case Advocacy and Engagement in a Working Alliance

This article presents a viewpoint for explaining the positive associations between case advocacy and the engagement in a working alliance of low‐income single mothers at‐risk for physical abuse of their children. Utilizing narrative vignettes from a qualitative study about clinical social workers’ experiences in engaging this population, the article suggests that client/worker partnerships in case advocacy enhanced opportunities for client/worker mutuality and for worker capacities to experience and communicate empathy to their clients. Theoretical constructs from Daniel J. Stern’s infant research and neuroscience are then applied to suggest an intersubjective framework for understanding what occurred.     

Professionals' understanding of partnership with parents in the context of family support programmes

Partnership has become a dominant concept in current thinking about the parent–professional relationship within a variety of interventions aimed at child welfare, including family support practice. However, despite the burgeoning policy and research attention, the meaning of partnership in practice remains unclear. Based on interviews with professionals in a family support intervention in Flanders (the Dutch‐speaking part of Belgium), this paper offers an insight into professionals' daily interactions with parents. The analysis reveals a tension between professionals' commitment towards parents on the one hand, and the way professionals take up this commitment in an expert role on the other. Consequences for professionals' relationships in child and family welfare interventions are discussed, as well as some implications for the realization of proper partnerships that acknowledge the power imbalances that exist in such partnerships.     

University-community partnerships in gerontological social work: building consensus around student learning

This article will demonstrate how schools of social work can collaborate with community agencies to provide a comprehensive and enriching educational experience for both student interns and participating agencies. An innovative partnership of a state school of social work with community agencies leading to a cutting-edge geriatric field education program is described. Case examples are used to illustrate the benefits of these partnerships, as well as challenges partners overcame in forging and sustaining partnerships. Necessary components of partnership development are detailed.     

Promoting Healthy Routes Back to Work? Boundary Spanning Health Professionals and Employability Programmes in Great Britain

Between 2003 and 2011, the Pathways to Work (PtW) initiative was established across Great Britain, as policymakers sought to address the ‘health‐related, personal and external barriers’ faced by people who were out of work and claiming incapacity benefits (IBs). In the first 18 districts that PtW was rolled‐out, the Public Employment Service (Jobcentre Plus) and National Health Service (NHS) organizations worked in partnership to deliver ‘condition management programmes’, which helped IB claimants to cope with health problems. Evaluation research has identified significant health benefits associated with these condition management programmes, but there has been less discussion of the role of frontline NHS professionals in ensuring that services worked effectively on the ground. This article deploys the concept of ‘boundary spanning’ to explore the role of NHS professionals within PtW. Drawing on more than 50 in‐depth interviews, the article concludes that these NHS staff played a key boundary spanning role in facilitating partnerships, based on an ability to engage with the values/practices of other partner organizations (especially Jobcentre Plus) and a willingness to challenge established professional boundaries and ways of working. The article notes that recent policy initiatives have abandoned the PtW partnership approach in favour of more familiar models of contracting out, and that NHS professionals have been excluded from the delivery of health/employability services. It is argued that these recent changes may negatively affect the quality and range of health‐related services available to people on IBs.     

United We Stand? Partnership Working in Health and Social Care and the Role of Social Work in Services for Older People

The concepts of ‘partnership’ and ‘collaboration’have become amongst the most critical themes of ‘new’Labour’s social policy, particularly in respect of thedelivery of health and social care. Although the terms are rarelyprecisely defined and hence have become problematic to analyse,in most understandings successful partnerships rely upon goodsystems of inter-professional collaboration. Through revisitingthe extensive literature on the sociology of the professions,and the nature of inter-professional working, this paper willargue that effective collaborative working within health andsocial care is hard to achieve, particularly in the light ofthe vast differences in power and culture between various occupationalgroupings, and the inherently competitive nature of professionsjostling for territory in the same areas of activity. It suggeststhat these issues cannot be resolved unless they are properlyunderstood; a rhetorical appeal to the unmitigated benefitsof ‘partnership’ alone will not produce more effectivejoint working. In addition, it notes that an appropriate rolefor social work in the context of partnership working has yetto be defined and proposes specific tasks and values that distinguishthe social worker from other related professionals.     

NORC Supportive Services Model Implementation and Community Capacity

As community residents age, service delivery systems may not be equipped to meet their changing needs. The Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) model has emerged as a strategy to utilize existing resources and develop a comprehensive approach to maintaining older adult functional status. However, little has been written about how community capacity influences NORC implementation. A community capacity framework was used to analyze the themes that emerged from participant and service provider interviews at two diverse NORC sites. The findings revealed that perceptions of a sense of community and partnership management influenced the NORC experience for participants and providers.     

Partnership models within a Maori social‐service provider*

This article is a preliminary case‐study analysis of the partnership arrangements present within a Maori social‐service provider, Te Whanau Arohanui, which, like many Maori organisations, holds as its basis the self‐determination guaranteed under the Treaty of Waitangi. The report explores the key areas of context, history, underlying rationale and impact of partnerships on Te Whanau Arohanui. It also explores the tensions inherent within partnerships built between state‐sector and Maori organisations. It argues that power imbalances and cultural values cannot be ignored in shaping outcomes within a political/economic and organisational context.     

Advocacy for parents and carers involved with children's services: making a difference to working in partnership?

This paper explores findings from the evaluation of a scheme providing direct advocacy to parents where there were concerns about their ability to provide safe care for their children. The evaluation explored the views of service users, social workers and conference chairpersons and found general agreement that the advocacy scheme contributed positively to the process of working in partnership. This is of interest given research findings which suggest that working in partnership is particularly difficult in cases involving child protection issues. However, it is noted that there appears to be little political will to develop advocacy schemes for parents in the UK, and this is of concern given the lack of supports available to them to navigate a complex and often intimidating system.