ABSTRACT
Partnership working usually occurs because there is a need to go beyond involving known individuals or professionals to invite wider representation and expertise. This chapter focuses on some key issues and debates in managing and leading partnerships; and, given that working collaboratively is both well established and in many cases mandatory, what managers can do to ensure inclusive, accountable and effective structures for improving outcomes for their staff and service users. Power relationships cut across all aspects of partnership working. There is a paradox, however: they are the reason why partnership working happens – to make the planning of services more inclusive and accountable by reducing power imbalances between organisations and with service users. Building trust is a reinforcing process, in that it is needed at the beginning of collaborations to establish good working relationships, but successful outcomes are also required so that the trust is developed further and collaboration is advanced.
