KCSC’s CEO Peer Network – What does it do?
Our last session held in March looked at partnership working. Read key points from the meeting below.
- Partnerships are not just about meeting specific contractual outputs for funding. They involve working together on a deeper level to achieve shared long-term goals.
- Partners collaboratively design services from the outset rather than having a pre-defined service imposed upon them.
- Partners share responsibility for both successes and failures.
- Partners work towards the same goals, with aligned values and a mutual understanding of what success looks like.
- Power is shared rather than concentrated in one party. It means valuing smaller, grassroots organisations.
- Good partnerships should have a safe space for partners to openly discuss issues, challenges, and mistakes without fear.
What might a partnership through a grant funded programme have that delivering via a contract might not have?
- Able to adjust approaches and shift resources to respond to changing community needs, rather than being restricted by rigid KPIs.
- Contracts are complicated by nature particularly in relation to contract terms and conditions placing added pressure on VCS partnership.
- Contracts are subject to VAT and attention spent dealing with this issue can often take away from important time developing the partnership.
As the VCS I am sure we all agree that the VCS should seek as much as possible to deliver grants rather than contracts.
There are pitfalls to partnerships such as:
- The "messy" human elements of partnership, including trust and power dynamics.
- Forced partnerships can be plagued with tension because it is forced due to funding cuts or funder demands to do so. They can be filled with complications due to the nature of why the partnership was formed.
But overall, if done well, partnerships can be beneficial for all.
We meet once a quarter, so keep a look out for future meetings in our e-bulletin.
Angela Spence
CEO, KCSC