This partnership malarkey is becoming too complicated for a simple soul like me who just wants to make a few friends, influence a few people and, in a shared enterprise, improve the lives of our residents.

It all used to be so simple. With the democratic mandate centre stage (I refer you to legislation from 2003 and 2007), one wooed the local great and good, charmed them to the Local Strategic Partnership (LSP) table and kept them enraptured with the delivery of a groovy sustainable community strategy.