This discussion paper looks at the factors that help and hinder success in a joint post and what local and national leaders can learn from this.

Key points:

• Good joint working cannot be centrally mandated, but does need stronger national support.
• Joined-up services are not an end in themselves. They must be targeted at improving specific outcomes in that locality.
• Joint appointments, for all their advantages, also create new tensions.
• Enforced structural changes are counter-productive to joint working

Download: Putting our heads together: what makes senior joint posts work?