Bridging the accountability gap - Audit Commission

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Governing partnerships | The partnership landscape
49 Good governance should ensure the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective services,
which enhance public trust in and satisfaction with public bodies.(Ref. 10, Ref. 11). In
corporate bodies, good governance depends upon an effective mix of hard and soft
organisational characteristics. Taken together, these create the conditions for better
decision making and effective internal accountability.
50 Hard characteristics include reliable financial data, performance data and risk
assessments, which are generated by robust systems and processes and which produce
timely and appropriate information for decision makers. The soft factors encompass
leadership, which sets the overall objectives, the roles and responsibilities required to
achieve them and cultural attributes like openness, honesty and integrity (the Cadbury
(Ref. 12) principles). These factors create the right climate for non-executives and others
to query, challenge and understand the basis on which decisions are reached.
51 Clear internal accountability provides the basis for effective external accountability to the
public and service users. Organisations that get this right can be more confident of
providing more innovative services to the public (Case study 1).
Case study 1
Guildford Borough Council – a good partner
Partners speak highly about working with the Council. They consider staff to be
professional and high quality and the Chief Executive’s leadership style empowering.
There are many good examples of partnership working focusing on important issues:
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the crime reduction and disorder partnership;
a multi-agency approach to the delivery of children’s play schemes, delivering
high-quality programmes to over 900 children aged 4-16;
draft Joint Municipal Waste Management Strategy with Surrey County Council and
Surrey district councils;
Surrey Scholar waste attitudes research project in partnership with University of
Surrey;
joint Waste Awareness Campaign in partnership with Waverley Borough Council;
very sheltered housing in partnership with Surrey County Council;
single assessment process for older people with the PCT and Surrey County Council;