A power struggle between health board and council bosses in Orkney has been blamed for failure to properly deliver local services.
The Accounts Commission and Auditor General for Scotland said Orkney Community Planning Partnership (OCPP) “was not providing effective leadership” which was having an impact on work to deal with issues like alcohol misuse, services for older people and childhood obesity.
A report published today said that while there were good examples of bodies working well together, OCPP was “not exploiting” them to provide good outcomes for local people.
The commission said it was “extremely disappointed” by the poor progress made by the organisation which spends about £137million a year on services for around 21,400 people.
Douglas Sinclair, chairman of the Accounts Commission, said: “Community planning is not delivering what it should for the people of Orkney.”
Island MSP Liam McArthur said: “The findings of this report are very disappointing because Orkney has always prided itself on the way we pull together as a community.”
The report said the organisation’s steering group had “made only limited progress” in driving a co-ordinated response to significant local challenges which have been “hampered by tensions between the two largest partners”.
“We note with serious concern that tensions between Orkney Islands Council and NHS Orkney have held back progress in community planning,” it added.
“It is imperative that those two bodies address and resolve issues between them.
“These tensions are having a negative impact on shared strategic leadership.
“They have contributed to the slow progress in agreeing OCPP’s priorities and in agreeing responses to other important developments, such as health and social care integration”.
The report said the OCPP’s structure was overly complex and limited partners ability to participate fully and contribute effectively, resulting in only just over half of last year’s targets being met.
Mr Sinclair said: “The partnership is aware of some of the areas in which it needs to improve but has been slow to implement necessary changes and improvements.
“There is substantial potential for it to build on vibrant community engagement and the strength of the voluntary sector to deliver better services.
“But this needs effective leadership from the top to make it happen.”