Constructing and sustaining Sure Start Local Programme partnerships: lessons for future inter‐agency collaborations
| Pages | 29-39 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/17466660200600021 |
| Date | 01 November 2006 |
| Published date | 01 November 2006 |
| Author | Debbie Allnock,Sophie Akhurst,Jane Tunstill |
| Subject Matter | Education,Health & social care,Sociology |
29
Journal of Children’s Services
Volume 1 Issue 3 November 2006
©Pavilion Journals (Brighton) Ltd
Abstract
This article outlines the experience of the first 260 Sure Start Local Programmes of developing inter-
agency partnerships in their areas. It draws on quantitative and qualitative data collected between
2000–2005 bythe implementation module of the government-commissioned National Evaluation of Sure
Start. Following a résumé of the aims and design of the Sure Start Local Programme initiative, a
description of the implementation module methodology and an overview of existing knowledge around
inter-agency collaboration, fivefactors areidentified which impacted on the partnership-building task.
These comprise: the natureof partnership history; clarity of purpose; the extent of strategic commitment
at the highest levels; trust among partners; and the characteristics of the national workforce. The article
concludes byhighlighting the continuing relevance of these issues to the new collaborations required by
the UKgovernment’s Every Child Matters agenda, including the work of children’s centres.
Key words
Sure Start; partnership; inter-agency working; joint working
1Senior Research
Officer
Implementation
Module, National
Evaluation of Sure
Start, Birkbeck,
University of London
2Research Officer,
Implementation
Module, National
Evaluation of Sure
Start, Birkbeck,
University of London
3Visiting Professor,
Social Care
Workforce Research
Unit, Kings College,
London Director,
Implementation
Module, National
Evaluation of
Sure Start
4NESS Research
Team: A Anning,
MBall, J Barnes,
JBelsky, B Botting,
MFrost, Z Kurtz,
ALeyland,
PMeadows,
EMelhuish and
JTunstill
Introduction
Current government statements in respect of children
and families consistently stress the concept of multi-
agency working. At the same time, much of the policy
and empirical literature cited enshrines a positive
attitude towards the idea (Atkinson et al,2005,
Cameron & Lart, 2003; Wilson & Pirrie, 2000). Indeed,
one consistent trend in public policy guidance in the
UKsince the late 1990s has been the encouragement
of greater collaboration between agencies (eg. DoH
1997; 2001; Cabinet Office, 1999). The issue of inter-
agency collaboration has been further highlighted by
the Inquiry into the death of Victoria Climbié (Laming,
2003) and the subsequent reorganisation of national
and local services for children and families required
by Every Child Matters (DfES, 2004).
This emphasis on inter-agency working can be
traced back most obviously to two closely related
bodies of knowledge. First, the theoretical and
clinical study of child development has increasingly
stressed the holistic nature of children’s needs
(Seden, 2002), often within an ecological perspective
(Jack, 2001; Aldgate et al,2006). These theories
highlight the myriad of services that may be relevant
to meeting a range of diverse needs (Aldgate et al,
2006; Tunstill et al,forthcoming). Second, inspection
reports produced by agencies such as the Commission
for Social Care Inspections (CSCI, 2005a) have
consistently highlighted deficits in both the co-
ordination of service delivery and, specifically, the
practice of information sharing (CSCI, 2005b; 2006).
Since 2000, SureStart Local Programmes (SSLPs)
have constituted a high-profile test bed for many of
Constructing and sustaining
Sure Start Local Programme
partnerships: lessons for future
inter-agency collaborations
Debbie Allnock1,Sophie Akhurst2,Jane Tunstill3and NESS Research Team4
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