We all negotiate every day, professionally and socially, yet few of us have had any training in how to do so more effectively. For professionals in health, social care and children's services, an ability to negotiate successfully is vital. Commissioning, contracting and negotiating new partnerships for delivering better services are now part of everyday life. Arguing that in the health and social services a different, less aggressive approach is required to that advocated by negotiators in the commercial sectors, Keith Fletcher explains how to prepare for and deal with negotiation situations...

Partnerships in Social Care is a practical handbook for professionals engaged in planning strategic partnerships in health, social care and education services. The author proposes that service providers consider five key questions when setting up new partnerships: * Is this partnership necessary? * What is its purpose? * Who is involved? * Where will it function? * How will it work? Fletcher discusses the common problems of building successful partnerships - such as conflicts of interest and allocation of funding and resources - and offers guidance and practical tips on dealing with them....