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What is the Devon Strategic Partnership (DSP)?

The DSP is a Local Strategic Partnership covering issues across Devon . The Government believes that a Local Strategic Partnership is the most effective way of preparing a community strategy for an area

The purpose is to improve the quality of life of people living in Devon by ensuring the work of all agencies and groups has the needs of local people at its core.

Strategic Partnership does not mean working together when that does not add value. It means knowing who is best placed to address an issue and ensuring that their actions are coherent. In that way it will improve outcomes for local people.

The DSP is organised with people contributing in several ways:

The analogy of a dry stone wall where differently shaped stones are strongly bound together without mortar has come to symbolise a partnership where the strength lies in valuing the contributions of all.

Why is the DSP needed?

Society is changing rapidly. Expectations are increasing, with new opportunities offered by developments in technologies. We are living our lives in very different ways. People expect services which are of consistently high quality, convenient and timely. Public services need to modernise to meet and surpass public expectation and to retain public support.

Many of the most challenging issues which face us, such as tackling social exclusion or rural deprivation have the characteristic that they are complex. They cannot be tackled by one agency or group and many of the traditional ways we have tackled problems are becoming out of date. For that reason, Local Strategic Partnerships sit at the heart of improving services and thereby improving the quality of people's lives. District LSPs take a strategic view of how to tackle issues facing their area. The DSP, by working with the districts, can address the issues that are common across the county, and can be more effectively dealt with at that level, to the advantage of all.

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