Network Logic - Index of
Network Logic - Index of
Network Logic - Index of
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<strong>Network</strong> logic<br />
Enhancing service delivery<br />
Communities have always provided a range <strong>of</strong> services to their own<br />
members, through self-help groups and mutual aid. Interpersonal<br />
networks, based on trust and need, enable people to access services<br />
and resources without an exchange <strong>of</strong> money or formal contract.<br />
These arrangements work when people can be confident that such<br />
exchanges are likely to be reciprocated, either directly through<br />
returned favours or indirectly through a shared commitment to the<br />
‘common good’. Local exchange trading schemes (LETS) and<br />
TimeBank initiatives have sought to replicate this networking<br />
through the explicit use <strong>of</strong> tokens or time credits.<br />
Voluntary organisations regard communities as their natural<br />
constituency, claiming that they are innovative and sensitive to the<br />
requirements <strong>of</strong> disadvantaged sections <strong>of</strong> the population that have<br />
been neglected by mainstream services. In seeking to tackle social<br />
exclusion, the government has looked to strengthen the capacity <strong>of</strong><br />
the voluntary and community sector to deliver a wider range <strong>of</strong><br />
services, acknowledging its particular strengths in reaching the<br />
hardest to reach. However, even though compacts have been<br />
developed to validate and protect the autonomy <strong>of</strong> voluntary and<br />
community organisations, greater partnership working still runs the<br />
risk <strong>of</strong> eroding the independent and pioneering nature <strong>of</strong> many<br />
voluntary organisations. Recent reviews have recommended a<br />
targeted increase in resources to the sector, but at the same time called<br />
for a rationalisation <strong>of</strong> intermediary and support bodies in favour <strong>of</strong><br />
‘front-line’ service providers. These trends in funding arrangements<br />
may make it less easy for the sector to maintain its flexible, boundaryspanning<br />
networks because <strong>of</strong> the pressure to deliver services and<br />
provide formal consultation mechanisms.<br />
These new policy directions acknowledge that communities can<br />
contribute to democratic decision-making by adding value to the<br />
design, development and delivery <strong>of</strong> services, and in so doing<br />
promote social inclusion and cohesion. However, the rhetoric <strong>of</strong><br />
participation and partnership has proved difficult to turn into a<br />
reality. There has been an over-reliance on voluntary sector<br />
148 Demos