The challenges of sustaining partnerships and the diversification of cultures

Collaborative working draws together institutions and actors from different sectors, spheres, and even countries who may have different traditions, different governance structures, and different values and priorities. While partnership approaches are not new and can operate successfully, there are continued challenges around sustaining partnerships in the longer term. These include short-term planning cycles, limited resources, shifting priorities and political pressures. These pressures often contribute to the re-enforcing of siloed approaches and retreatism back into organisational cultures and norms as a way of managing hurdles that these challenges raise. After developing on the Scotland model of ‘Prevention First’, this chapter examines two programmes based on initiatives focused on collaborative working to prevent crime and violence in Scotland (the Public Health Approach in Glasgow, and the Northampton Community Initiative to Reduce Violence), it then discusses the benefits of partnerships to resolve challenges faced by vulnerable communities. It also raises some of the difficulties to maintain these partnerships in the longer term.