Aberdeenshire Community Planning

Partnership

Membership & Organisational Structure

November 2018

Contents

1. Introduction to the Partnership........................................................3

2. Vision and Principles......................................................................5

3. Financial Management...................................................................6

4. CPP Board......................................................................................7

5. CPP Executive..............................................................................11

6. LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Groups.....................................14

6.1. Overview................................................................................146.2. Changing Aberdeenshire’s Relationship with Alcohol LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group....................................................166.3. Reducing Child Poverty LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group...............................................................................................176.4. Connected and Cohesive Communities Strategic Lead Partnership Group............................................................................18

7. Local Community Planning Groups..............................................19

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1. Introduction to the Partnership

1.1. Community planning ensures people and communities are genuinely involved in the decisions on public services which affect them; allied to a commitment from organisations to work together in providing better public services.

1.2. The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 places a joint duty on local authorities, NHS, the Police and Fire Service, Scottish Enterprise and various other organisations to carry out community planning in their area, through a Community Planning Partnership.

1.3. The Aberdeenshire Community Planning Partnership (CPP) is responsible for monitoring, reviewing and delivering positive changes for Aberdeenshire’s communities with a specific focus on reducing socio-economic inequality, primarily through the priorities identified in Aberdeenshire’s Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) 2017-2027.

1.4. The CPP establishes governance arrangements for the Aberdeenshire Community Justice Partnership, supporting delivery of the Community Justice Outcomes Improvement Plan.

1.5. The partners are: Aberdeenshire Council Aberdeenshire Integration Joint Board Aberdeenshire Rural Partnerships Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce Cairngorms National Park Authority Historic Environment Scotland North East Scotland College (NESCOL) Nestrans NHS Grampian Police Scotland Scottish Enterprise Scottish Environmental Protection Agency Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Scottish Government Scottish Natural Heritage Skills Development Scotland Sport Scotland VisitScotland

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1.6. Each partner agrees to undertake the following:

Ensure appropriate representation at meetings, and other partnership groups where appropriate and applicable.

Support or lead work to deliver the agreed outcomes for Aberdeenshire.

Ensure their organisation has mechanisms in place to allow effective communication and information sharing on community planning between its members, departments or services as appropriate. As a minimum, these mechanisms will include regular reports to a senior management team or grouping, distribution of community planning information and updates to members of staff as and when required.

Include any agreed community planning budget requirements into their annual budget planning process.

1.7 The CPP’s functionality is ensured by officers employed by partners that come together in a support capacity, including the community planning team, accountants, community engagement officers (work includes Citizens’ Panel) and communications officers, among others.

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2. Vision and Principles

2.1. Partners agreed a common vision for the future of Aberdeenshire:

“Working together for the best quality of life for everyone in Aberdeenshire”

We agree to pursue that vision through the following Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) priorities:

• Changing Aberdeenshire’s relationship with alcohol

• Reducing child poverty

• Connected & Cohesive Communities

We are committed to working together, improving our engagement with communities and continuing to work to develop our partnership.

2.2. All work undertaken to progress these themes will be supported by six guiding principles:

Inclusion – We will ensure that our actions improve all Aberdeenshire citizens’ ability to access our services and will take account of all factors that create a barrier to this. We will do all that we can to ensure equal opportunities and will meet all national requirements on these.

Accountability – We will make ourselves answerable to the communities and people of Aberdeenshire and keep them informed of, and seek their views on, what we are doing. 

Partnership – We will work together with our partners and the people of Aberdeenshire to achieve our vision and will encourage communities to recognise their important role in sharing in community planning work.

Evidence-based – We will ensure that our actions are based on clear evidence and information and are derived from what the community needs.

Sustainability – We will work to ensure that our actions meet the needs of the current generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Efficiency – We will aim to remove any wasteful overlaps and make the best use of our key resources to deliver our strategic priorities.

2.3. The conduct of CPP meetings should follow the six guiding principles as set out in 2.2. Representatives should work in an inclusive manner, be accountable to the communities of Aberdeenshire, work in

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partnership, take evidence-based action, and work in sustainable and efficient ways.

3. Financial Management

3.1. Aberdeenshire Council administers the joint community planning budget on behalf of the partnership. This is comprised of annual contributions from the funding partners. The Board has responsibility for monitoring this budget.

3.2. To evidence good governance of the partnership’s finances, there will be a finance update on Community Planning Board agendas at least twice a year.

3.3. Funding streams may be made available by the Scottish Government that need to be managed by the partnership. In most cases these are administered by a partner organisation and the funding is thereby governed by the financial rules of that partner organisation. The Community Planning Board has responsibility for monitoring these budgets, dependent on value.

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4. CPP Board

4.1. Responsibilities of the Chair and Vice Chair

The CPP Board is chaired by one of the statutory partners defined in Schedule 1 of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 (see the 15 statutory partners in section 4.2 below). The tenure of the Chair is five years.  A Chair may step down before their tenure is served by giving two weeks’ written notice to the Board (see 4.2).

The Vice Chair of the Board is a representative of one of the CPP’s statutory partners, excepting the partner organisation represented by the Chair. The Vice Chair undertakes the responsibilities of the Chair if the Chair is temporarily unable to. The tenure is two years, but a Vice Chair may also step down by giving written notice to the Board Chair and partners.

4.2. Selection of the Chair and Vice Chair

When the role of Chair or Vice Chair is vacant for whichever reason, a period of two weeks will be granted to all statutory partners to submit their interest to the support staff of the Community Planning Team. If only one note of interest is received, all partners will be notified and that person will take up the role. If more than one note of interest is received, statutory partners will be asked to vote at the next meeting of the Board.

4.3. Membership

Each partner within the Board shares a leadership responsibility to ensure collective ownership of community planning. Partner organisations represented at the Board include:

Statutory Partner Organisations with specific responsibilities to facilitate community planning:

• Aberdeenshire Council • Police Scotland• Scottish Fire and Rescue Service • NESTRANS• NHS Grampian • Scottish Enterprise

Statutory Partner Organisations with specific responsibilities to participate in community planning:

• Aberdeenshire Integration Joint Board• Cairngorm National Park Authority • Historic Environment Scotland • North East Scotland College (NESCOL) • Scottish Environmental Protection Agency • Scottish Natural Heritage • Skills Development Scotland

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• Sport Scotland • Visit Scotland

Other Partner Organisations:• Aberdeenshire Rural Partnerships • Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action• Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce• Scottish Government

The Chair of the CPP Executive is an advisor to the Board and will attend each meeting. LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group Chairs will be invited to attend as appropriate as advisors.

Partners should be represented at meetings by a senior representative from their governance arrangements (e.g. Board chairperson, CEO or regional director), as far as possible.

A list of the names of current representatives on the Board is available by emailing communityplanning@ouraberdeenshire.org.uk

4.4. Tenure

Board members will generally represent their organisation for the duration that their organisation requires of them.

Exceptions to this rule are:

• Chair of the Board

4.5. Substitutes

If a Board member is unable to attend a meeting, they will nominate a substitute to represent them. The substitute must be fully briefed. Substitutes have the same voting rights as the member they are representing.

4.6. Voting

Whilst it is anticipated that the Board will achieve consensus on matters before it, in the event of a vote being necessary each partner organisation will be entitled to exercise one vote. In the event of a tie the chair will have a casting vote. Advisors to the Board will not have a vote.

4.7. Meetings

The Board will meet no less than four times per year. Meetings of the Board only are open to the public, except to the extent that the public be excluded during consideration of an item which contains confidential information.

4.8. Quorum

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A quorum is the minimum number of members necessary to conduct the business of that group. The quorum of the Board shall be a third of members. There are currently 19 community planning partner organisations represented on the Board, so the quorum shall be the Chair or Vice Chair, plus six members. Of those six members, at least one must be a statutory member with specific responsibilities to facilitate community planning (see section 4.2).

4.9. Terms of Reference

The Board sets the strategic direction for community planning in Aberdeenshire. The purpose of the Board is to:

Ensure partners demonstrate collective ownership, leadership and strategic direction of community planning.

Ensure the CPP sets an ambitious vision with, and for, local communities; the CPP involves all partners and resources that can contribute towards delivering on that vision; and that partners deliver on it using their shared leadership role.

Ensure the CPP partners are clear about how they work with public service reform programmes (including health and social care integration and community justice reforms).

Apply effective challenge and scrutiny in community planning, built on mutual trust, a shared and ambitious commitment to continuous improvement, and a culture that promotes and accepts challenge among partners.

Foster, create and sustain an environment to support better partnership working.

Demonstrate how the CPP is working effectively in partnership to improve outcomes as part of how they are held to account, including to local communities through annual progress reports.

Endorse other plans and associated progress reports as appropriate.

Approve specific documents as the Board may decide.

Agree and review the joint Community Planning Partnership budget arrangements.

Make decisions regarding funding exceeding £50,000.

Appoint the Chair of the Board

Process requests for full membership of the Community Planning Partnership.

Approve changes in the structure, distribution of functions and responsibilities of the partnership.

Approve reviews and amendments of the Partnership Agreement.

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Resolve any conflict that may arise on any matter between the groups within the partnership. When complaints arise among partners, the individual partners’ complaints processes will be followed. However, for complaints relating to partnership-funded services/initiatives only, the Council’s (as lead partner) complaints process will be followed.

Decide on any matter (which would otherwise have been delegated), following a division in another group, where one third or more members of that group present make such a request at the time the decision of that group is reached.

Delegate action/decision to other groups in the partnership as appropriate.

Ensure that community planning partners work with community bodies to ensure that all bodies which can contribute to community planning are able to do so in an effective way and to the extent that they wish to do so.

Approve a Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP) and a Locality Plan and ensure the CPP develops locality and thematic approaches as appropriate to address these, with participation from community bodies representing the interests of persons experiencing inequalities.

Set the priorities or aims within each LOIP for the year ahead.

Review the LOIP priorities within the planned 1, 3 and 5 year reviews or outwith these to reflect local and national drivers as required.

Place strong emphasis on preventative measures to achieve ambitious long term improvement goals on the LOIP priorities.

Ensure partners align their collective resources in ways which support its local priorities effectively and efficiently.

Monitor whether partners' deployment of resources remains appropriate for meeting its ambitions, by reviewing quarterly finance reports, and take corrective action where necessary.

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5. CPP Executive

5.1. Responsibilities of the Chair

Each Executive member organisation will chair the Executive for a 12 month period on a rotating basis (subject to capacity).

The Chair will:

convene and chair meetings

guide and draw discussion to a conclusion, agreeing actions where appropriate

ensure that partners provide appropriate representation to the Executive

ensure the roles of groups and individuals in the partnership are fulfilled

Attend each meeting of the CPP Board as an advisor

5.2. Membership

Partner organisations represented at the Executive include:• Aberdeenshire Council • Police Scotland • Scottish Fire and Rescue Service • NHS Grampian • Health and Social Care Partnership • Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action • Scottish Enterprise

Attendance from wider partners can be requested as and when required. The chairs of each of the LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Groups are advisors to the Executive, report regularly to the Executive and attend each meeting.

5.3. Tenure

Executive members will represent their organisation for the duration that their organisation requires of them, with the exception of the Chair (see 5.1.).

5.4. Substitutes

All Executive members agree to nominate a representative who can substitute at meetings if they are unable to attend. The substitute must be fully briefed. Substitutes have the same voting rights as the member they are representing.

5.5. Voting

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Whilst it is anticipated that the Executive will achieve consensus on matters before it, in the event of a vote being necessary each partner organisation will be entitled to one vote. In the event of a tie the chair will have a casting vote. Advisors to the Executive will not have a vote.

5.6. Meetings

The Executive will meet no less than four times per year.

5.7. Quorum

A quorum is the minimum number of members necessary to conduct the business of that group. There are currently seven community planning partner organisations represented on the Executive. The quorum of the Executive shall be the Chair plus two members.

5.8. Terms of Reference

The Executive is accountable to the Board as it coordinates community planning across Aberdeenshire. Partners should be represented at meetings by their most senior officer.

The purpose of the Executive is to:

Implement tactical delivery of the agreed community planning priorities and outcomes at Aberdeenshire level, prevent and address barriers and hold others to account for implementing operational delivery, including those partners not represented on the Executive group.

Exercise executive powers on behalf of partners to maintain, review and report on progress on delivery of Part 2 Community Planning (Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015.

Ensure that work is carried out in accordance with the nine principles of effective community planning (Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015, Part 2 community planning guidance) , the National Standards for Community Engagement and Aberdeenshire’s “Valuing Young People” Youth Engagement Strategy.

Make decisions involving funding of a value up to and including £50,000.

Make decisions on any other matters not reserved to the Board level and that cannot be dealt with at LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group or locality level.

Deal with and respond to issues that require a broader focus than appropriate at LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group or locality level.

Ensure the CPP focuses its collective energy on where all of its partners' efforts can add most value for its communities, with particular emphasis on reducing inequalities.

Ensure all CPP partners provide resources to support preventative measures to the scale required to fulfil the CPP’s ambitions.

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Ensure effective community participation informs decisions about the CPP’s priorities, how services are shaped and resources deployed; this includes working with community bodies on co-production where these bodies wish to do so.

Lead cultural, systems and practice change across agency and boundaries.

Provide effective governance and performance management arrangements locally and report on progress to the CPP Board.

Lead the development of the LOIP through all CPP partners, including those not on the Executive, and oversee its implementation reporting exceptions to the Board.

Ensure a skilled and competent workforce to deliver the LOIP.

Agree the joint actions and resources necessary to support the effective delivery of the LOIP.

Commission and support key specific and thematic sub groups.

Implement a solution-focused approach by providing clear, consistent messages which inspire confidence.

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6. LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Groups6.1. Overview

There are three LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Groups focusing on delivery of the three LOIP priorities:

• Changing Aberdeenshire’s Relationship with Alcohol• Reducing Child Poverty• Connected & Cohesive Communities

The three lead strategic partnership groups already operating across Aberdeenshire with a strategic remit for related activity are:

LOIP Priority Strategic Lead Partnership Current ChairChanging Aberdeenshire’s Relationship with Alcohol

Aberdeenshire Alcohol & Drugs Partnership (ADP)

David Rodger (Chief Executive, Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action)

Reducing Child Poverty Tackling Poverty & Inequalities (TP&I) Group

Chris White (Area Manager (Buchan), Aberdeenshire Council)

Connected & Cohesive Communities

Connected and Cohesive Communities Strategic Lead Partnership Group

Vincent Docherty (Head of Education, Aberdeenshire Council)

The Chair of each Strategic Lead Partnership Group is an Advisor to the Executive and will attend each Executive meeting.

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Partner organisations represented on each Strategic Lead Partnership are*:

Changing Aberdeenshire’s Relationship with

Alcohol

Reducing Child Poverty

Connected & Cohesive

Communities

Aberdeenshire North, Central and South Alcohol Drug and BBV Fora

Aberdeenshire Council: Education, HSCP and Elected Members

Aberdeenshire Council

Aberdeenshire Council: Education; Community Safety; Licensing Board

Skills Development Scotland

Police Scotland

Aberdeenshire Youth Council

NHS Grampian Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action

Health and Social Care Partnership

NHS Grampian

Job Centre Plus Alcohol and Drugs Partnership

Health and Social Care Partnership

NHS Grampian Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action

North East Scotland College (NESCOL)

Health and Social Care Partnership

Department for Work and Pensions

Skills Development Scotland (SDS)

Police Scotland Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

Economic Development

Scottish Prison Service Police Scotland NESTRANS

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action (AVA)

*these lists are not exhaustive, and subject to amendment /addition by the head of the relevant Strategic Lead Group.

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6.2. Changing Aberdeenshire’s Relationship with Alcohol LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group

Terms of Reference

Strategic Lead Partnership Groups are accountable to the Executive. Each Group has its own priority and related action plans and timelines. The Group is responsible for the governance and monitoring of a LOIP priority, and ensures partners take ownership of, and ensure delivery of, agreed actions.

The Chair of the Group should attend meetings of the Executive with a commitment to providing a progress update on their LOIP, highlighting barriers and support required of partners, and contributing to discussions on all topics.

The purpose of the Changing Aberdeenshire’s Relationship with Alcohol LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group is to:

Identify areas where action will make the most favourable impact towards their stated aims within an existing landscape of activities related to their priority.

Develop action plans to deliver the LOIP’s aims, which should include outcomes, actions, deadlines and performance indicators.

Work collaboratively with partners and communities to deliver the LOIP priorities.

Engage with communities to develop their LOIP and produce evidence of this engagement.

Provide support officers with updates and data that will support the monitoring of progress and success of the LOIP within annual statutory reporting deadlines.

Carry out the actions stated in the LOIP which fall under their responsibility and ensure that partners complete assigned actions to deadline as far as possible.

Use the Executive for tactical support as needed.

Review / update content of the Our Aberdeenshire website as required.

The structures around the LOIP priorities do not in any way impede work being undertaken at a local level between partners to progress local issues.

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6.3. Reducing Child Poverty LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group

Terms of Reference

Strategic Lead Partnership Groups are accountable to the Executive. Each Group has its own priority and related action plans and timelines. The Group is responsible for the governance and monitoring of a LOIP priority, and ensures partners take ownership of, and ensure delivery of, agreed actions.

The Chair of the Group should attend meetings of the Executive with a commitment to providing a progress update on their LOIP, highlighting barriers and support required of partners, and contributing to discussions on all topics.

The purpose of the Reducing Child Poverty LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group is to:

Identify areas where action will make the most favourable impact towards their stated aims within an existing landscape of activities related to their priority.

Develop action plans to deliver the LOIP’s aims, which should include outcomes, actions, deadlines and performance indicators.

Work collaboratively with partners and communities to deliver the LOIP priorities.

Engage with communities to develop their LOIP and produce evidence of this engagement.

Provide support officers with updates and data that will support the monitoring of progress and success of the LOIP within annual statutory reporting deadlines.

Carry out the actions stated in the LOIP which fall under their responsibility and ensure that partners complete assigned actions to deadline as far as possible.

Use the Executive for tactical support as needed.

Review / update content of the Our Aberdeenshire website as required.

The structures around the LOIP priorities do not in any way impede work being undertaken at a local level between partners to progress local issues.

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6.4. Connected and Cohesive Communities Strategic Lead Partnership Group

Terms of Reference

The Connected and Cohesive Communities Strategic Lead Partnership Group oversees Locality Planning arrangements in Aberdeenshire and builds strong collaborative approaches to working as a Partnership. It is accountable to the Executive.

The Group’s overarching remit is to:

Oversee locality planning arrangements for those communities experiencing poorer outcomes than other parts of Aberdeenshire or than similar communities in Scotland because of socio-economic inequality, based on a robust understanding of the needs of communities across Aberdeenshire.

The responsibilities of the Connected and Cohesive Communities Strategic Lead Partnership Group are to:

Oversee the development and delivery of Locality Plans, as defined under the Community Empowerment Act. Local priorities should be identified which focus on how the CPP will add most value as a partnership to improve outcomes and tackle inequalities.

Conduct horizon scanning to understand the needs, opportunities and challenges of communities through data and local knowledge. Using that evidence to determine where new locality plans may be required, and make recommendations to the CPP Executive accordingly.

Consider common themes and propose how they can be progressed locally/across Aberdeenshire through existing partnership arrangements.

Develop partnership working by sharing best practice and identifying new ways for partners to work together to achieve better outcomes for communities.

Provide support officers with updates and data that will support the monitoring of progress and success of the Locality Plans within statutory reporting deadlines.

Use the Executive for tactical support as needed.

Review / update content of the Our Aberdeenshire website as required.

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7. Local Community Planning Groups

There are six Local Community Planning Groups across Aberdeenshire. They hold knowledge of local communities’ needs, circumstances and opportunities and understand the local partnership landscape and services. Where an area has an agreed Locality Plan (as agreed by the CPP Board) they will report to the Connected and Cohesive Communities LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Group on the progress, achievements and barriers of their Locality Plans.

The purpose of the Local Community Planning Groups is to:

Identify local priorities and ensure delivery of outcomes

Own the development and actions of Locality Plans

Identify and deliver actions/interventions

Identify barriers and either remove them, or escalate them to the LOIP Strategic Lead Partnership Groups

Review and update content of Our Aberdeenshire website as required

Details of current locality groups are available at www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk

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