Doncaster Compact
Public services and the community & voluntary sector in Doncaster have made a new commitment to working in partnership with the signing of the 'Doncaster Compact'. The Compact aims to benefit local residents by improving working arrangements between community organisations and public sector bodies, such as the Council, Police and NHS Doncaster. The agreement has five codes of good practice and was signed by members of Doncaster's 'Discover the Spirit' (DtS) Partnership.
Joyce Foster, who signed the document on behalf of community and voluntary sector organisations on the partnership said "I am really pleased that we now have this agreement on partnership working in Doncaster. It provides a solid platform for closer working arrangements, setting out reasonable expectations and providing a basis for mediation when there are disputes."
Speaking about the Compact, Chief Superintendent Bob Sanderson who is a member of the DtS Board, said "Community groups, voluntary organisations and social enterprises contribute enormously to Doncaster. By working closely with public services such as the Police we are all able to deliver better outcomes for local people."
What is a Compact?
The Compact aims to benefit local residents by improving working arrangements between community organisations and public sector bodies.
Established in 1998, the Compact originated as a national agreement between government and the third sector. Local compact agreements are now in place across England.
In Doncaster, public sector organisations that have signed our local Compact agreement include the Council, South Yorkshire Police, NHS Doncaster and other members of the local strategic partnership. The agreement has a framework document and five codes of good practice:
- BME Code of Good Practice
- Community Group Code of Good Practice
- Consultation and Policy Appraisal Code of Good Practice
- Funding and Procurement Code of Good Practice
- Volunteering Code of Good Practice
How is the Compact Implemented?
In addition to the codes of good practice, Doncaster’s Compact also includes a mediation process in order to help resolve issues that may arise between the third sector and our partners.
The mediation process involves three stages:
Stage 1 - partners aim to resolve differences directly, with the support of a third party where desired
Stage 2 - third sector organisations should approach Doncaster CVS to discuss the issue. The compact representative at Doncaster CVS will attempt to facilitate a resolution between partners
Stage 3 - the compact representative will signpost the partner raising the concern to the appropriate Compact Mediation Service if the matter cannot be resolved locally.
The impact and effectiveness of the compact will be regularly monitored.
If you think that a statutory body has not followed Compact principles in the way it conducts its business, it is worth bringing this up with them, along with constructive suggestions for how they can improve. NCVO has produced a useful factsheet called Fighting the Good Fight: Effective Dispute Resolution Tactics which provides more information and advice regarding dispute resolution.
Doncaster Compact Documents
You can download the Compact documents by following the links below:
- Compact Framework Document
- BME Code of Good Practice
- Community Group Code of Good Practice
- Consultation and Policy Appraisal Code of Good Practice
- Funding and Procurement Code of Good Practice
- Volunteering Code of Good Practice
- Mediation Process
To discuss the compact in more detail, contact us by email at compact@doncastercvs.org.uk or on telephone number 01302 343300, ext. 221.
