19 February 2007, 07/63
Working in partnership
West Lancashire District Council has pledged to work in partnership
to ensure local services continue to be delivered in the best
possible way.
The District Council has signed up to a letter of agreement with
Lancashire County Council and six other borough councils to improve
the current 'two-tier' system of councils.
In addition, a working paper - Transforming Local Government in
Lancashire - highlights the activity that is already being done and
makes a strong case for continuing to improve on what is already in
place.
The documents have been sent to the Government, in response to the
recent White Paper, as a clear statement of belief that local
councils are already achieving high standards and should be
strengthened further.
The partnership work with the County Council is just one aspect of
joint working that West Lancashire District Council is keen to
progress.
Cllr Geoff Roberts, Leader of West Lancashire District Council,
said: "This is an important agreement with the County Council to
work together to improve services for the benefit of local people.
However, in addition to working more closely with Lancashire County
Council, here at West Lancs we intend to fully investigate all
other forms of partnership working and sharing of service
provision. This will include working with other public
organisations and private companies."
"Our over-riding aim is to improve the service provision to
residents of West Lancs and at same time make sure all our
activities are more cost-effective and that we work as efficiently
as possible, reducing costs while driving up quality."
In addition to West Lancs District Council and Lancashire County
Council, the other councils involved are Chorley, Wyre, Ribble
Valley, South Ribble, Fylde, and Rossendale borough
councils.
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