East Kent Local Strategic Partnership
Working together to improve the quality of life of
those living and working in East Kent
Brief Background to Local Strategic Partnerships
The Local Government Act 2000 gave local authorities the duty to
prepare a Community Strategy for their area, in partnership with
other stakeholders. The Community Strategy is a long-term vision
and sets out how to improve the quality of life and services in a
local area.
Local authorities were encouraged to set up non-statutory,
multi-agency Local Strategic Partnerships (LSP), to develop this
long-term vision. A LSP brings together at a local level the
different parts of the public, private, community and voluntary
sectors.
A combination of organisations, and the community, working
together as part of an LSP will have a far greater chance of
meeting the needs of local communities, improving public services
and delivering economic, social and physical regeneration.
The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007
extended the duty to develop Sustainable Community Strategies to other public
sector organisations, principally including the Primary Care Trust,
Police Authority and the Fire & Rescue Service.
The LSP also delivers the improvements in the local area agreement.
A new performance framework, the Comprehensive Area Assessment,
will assess how well these key partners work together.
What is the East Kent Local Strategic Partnership?
The Dover District is now part of an East Kent Local Strategic
Partnership, covering the geographical area of Canterbury, Dover,
Shepway and Thanet. The proposal for an integrated East Kent LSP
received strong support in a range of consultation activities
culminating in a stakeholder conference in December 2007.
The East Kent Local Strategic Partnership (EKLSP) was formally
established on the 1st April 2008. The partnership brings together
the public bodies, businesses and voluntary and community sectors
in a voluntary partnership to work towards a prosperous and caring
community.
A management group oversees the day-to-day operations and steer
of the partnership. This consists of key partners with a “duty to
co-operate”, namely the four District Councils, Kent County Council
SEEDA, Kent Police and the Eastern and Coastal Primary Care
Trust.
To find out who sits on your East Kent LSP, please see the
EKLSP website: www.eastkentlsp.org.uk
What will the East Kent Local Strategic Partnership do?
The purpose of the East Kent Local Strategic Partnership (EKLSP)
is to promote the economic, social and environmental well-being of
the area, improving the quality of life for all.
The partnership will be the strategic body under which specific
partnerships (such as Community Safety Partnerships) and
initiatives will tackle key projects and priorities.
A range of common priority areas for East Kent have been
identified:
- Sustainable Communities
- Transport and infrastructure
- Skills transformation
- Health and well-being
- Renaissance of our Coastal Communities and urban areas
- Economic development and regeneration
- Culture and Tourism
- Housing
- Planning and Local Development Framework
- Inward Investment
- Community Safety
- Environment
It will be the role of the EKLSP to reach consensus on the key
areas for focus.
The EKLSP is responsible for:
- Overseeing the Local Action Plan element of Kent Agreement 2
(Local Area Agreement) for East Kent.
Community Involvement
The East Kent Local Strategic Partnership (EKLSP) will build on
the strengths of existing local partnerships and networks to keep a
link to local communities and groups and influence wider priorities
and resources. The partnership will work to ensure inclusivity of
community stakeholders in developing district and East Kent
working-groups.
A Stakeholder Forumis being created t o provide an open and
inclusive forum where all stakeholders can engage and influence the
future direction of the EKLSP and the future of East Kent. This
will meet once a year.
Further information
Please see the EKLSP website www.eastkentlsp.org.uk
You can also contact Marie Newell, Partnership Support
Officer, East Kent LSP for more details.
Tel: 01227 862358; Fax: 01227 764955; E-mail: marie@eastkentlsp.org.uk
Contact
E-mail: policy@dover.gov.uk
