Initiating, developing and sustaining social partnerships through partnership work (original) (raw)

Social partnerships are increasingly seen as a means by which both government and nongovernment agencies can identify and respond to localised need. This paper reports the findings of the first phase of the project that aims to inform how best social partnerships can be formed and developed to support vocational education and training at the local level. This phase sought to identify key principles and practices that will underpin this aim, using the experiences of 10 existing social partnerships. A key finding was the importance of partnership work. This is detailed through five dimensions of partnership work, and principles and practices that were identified and verified as most likely assisting the development and transformation of social partnerships over time. The dimensions of 'partnership work' comprise (i) cultural scoping work; (ii) connection building work; (iii) capacity building work; (iv) collective work, and (v) trust building work. The principles manifest with subtle differences at the initial and later stages of partnership work, include developing and maintaining: (i) shared goals; (ii) relations with partners; (iii) capacity for partnership work; (iv) governance and leadership, and (v) trust and trustworthiness. The specific implications for VET will be explored in the next phase of this project. Social partnerships In Australia, and worldwide, governments, civic organizations and global agencies, including those associated with vocational education and training (VET), are increasingly valuing social partnerships as means to understand and address local and regional concerns and for building social capital. 'Social partnerships' are localised networks that connect some combination of local community groups, education and training providers, industry and government to work on local issues and community-building activities (Seddon & Billett 2004). Social partnerships hold the prospect of engaging communities with government and non-government organizations in solving problems, making decisions, and negotiating desirable outcomes cooperatively. They are seen as a way to assist collaborative decision-making and build local capacity in ways that support economic, social and civic development attuned to local needs and circumstances. By its very nature, a partnership requires partners to collaborate in achieving common goals. However, the process of working together is complex and challenging, and at times contested. It requires partners and participants to understand that effective social partnerships work in specific ways directed towards shared goals or more likely, a common focus. This paper reports on a NVTRE funded research project to investigate the formation, development and continuity of in social partnerships in order to understand how best they might be initiated and developed. The project reviewed the workings and