New structure for the Cheltenham Strategic Partnership

Alongside the developments of the new draft sustainable community strategy has been work to improve the structure of the CSP. The Prospectus for Partnership working in Cheltenham sets out the agreed structure.

The CSP agreed that the new structure should reflect the recommendations set out in the 2006 Tavistock Institute report on strategic partnership working in Gloucestershire. Partners also agreed that the role of the CSP should be both strategic and operational and that any new structure should reflect the new policy framework and be aligned, where possible, to the Gloucestershire Strategic Partnership (GSP) structure.

In broad terms, the prospectus proposes a two-tier structure for the CSP:

• a main "partnership of partnerships" bringing together all operational and strategic partnerships, core partners and community/voluntary sectors involved in the delivery of the community strategy that will meet every six months.
• a smaller, more focused management group comprising six core partners and representatives of the six delivery partnerships will meet every two months to drive forward the delivery of the community strategy and hold the delivery partnerships to account.

Underneath the management group there will be six delivery partnerships which will all have a standard terms of reference - currently being developed. Each partnership will focus on one of the six strategic priorities identified by the CSP for the next five years. The partnerships are all at different stages of development but the intention is that all six will be ready to go live in October to coincide with the launch of the final community strategy. The six partnerships are:

• Stronger Communities Partnership
• Children and Young People's Partnership
• Cheltenham Community Safety Partnership
• Low Carbon Partnership
• Health and Wellbeing Partnership
• Strategic Economic Partnership

(for further and more specific information on each of these partnerships, please see the "Thematic Partnerships" section of the site)

In addition, it is proposed that an appraisal and scrutiny body is established that will advise the CSP on the three cross-cutting issues of sustainable development, equalities and health impacts.

Read the prospectus for partnership working