Introduction

The Labour government has placed increasing emphasis on partnership working as the key mechanism for the delivery of policies to combat poverty, promote social inclusion and revitalise democratic citizenship. This focus on partnership working between individuals and agencies reflects the multidimensional nature of exclusion and deprivation. It also acknowledges the limitations of single agency approaches to tackling these enduring social problems.

In local government, a significant number of local authorities have sought to address issues of poverty and deprivation through anti-poverty and social inclusion strategies. A majority of these authorities have developed strategies on the premise that, working in isolation, local government has only limited capacities to impact in positive ways on the lives of people living in disadvantaged communities. Anti-poverty and social inclusion partnerships have therefore aimed to harness the resources and expertise of key stakeholders within the statutory, voluntary and community sectors.

This chapter assesses partnership working as a mechanism for the development and delivery of anti-poverty and social exclusion strategies in local authorities in England and Wales. It begins by charting the development of anti-poverty strategies in local government. Drawing on research into local authority anti-poverty strategies, it then addresses the rationale behind anti-poverty partnerships, examines the nature and extent of partnership structures and assesses their impact in promoting innovative policy responses to poverty and exclusion. Finally, the chapter highlights some issues for the future development of these partnerships including the fact that, in general, local authorities have not included people living in poverty in these arrangements.

Local government anti-poverty strategies

In their Introduction to this volume, Balloch and Taylor have outlined the main developments that have contributed to the emergence of partnership as a central component of local government activity. These developments have given rise to new kinds of local government services designed to meet the changing needs of local populations. Local authorities have sought to garner the resources and expertise of other agencies to enable them to deliver a growing array of policies and service programmes (Gregory, 1998).

Local authorities have also developed partnership working in response to growing levels of poverty and social exclusion. Anti-poverty and social inclusion partnerships have been one of the key mechanisms through which local government has sought to combat the effects of poverty and exclusion in local communities.