How do partners claim credit for community work in the LCDP?

'Changing Ireland' recently put a question to Minister Phil Hogan to end debate between projects that co-operate on a piece of work, but need clear direction on who claims the credit.

Q:        The evaluation reports for LCDP work don’t allow two companies/projects who collaborate to both claim involvement. Sometimes the minor partner gets the credit, while the lead partner looks like they're sitting on their hands. Can you fix this? (E.g Where someone is supported/directed onto a training course).

A:         If two groups collaborate to provide supports to one person under the LCDP, it is quite valid for both of them to claim credit for their own part of the work. 

What should happen is that both clearly define the supports they provide and report this – the reporting systems allow this. Thus, if one group works with a client to provide them with training, and another then helps the client in job searches and with interviews, both can and should report this. 

If that results in a person getting a job, for example, the role that the LCDP played can be captured not as a person progressing into employment but that the LCDP made that individual better prepared for the labour market - which is a high priority outcome of the LCDP. 

Equally, if two groups come together to offer training, they can both record and claim their work and successes. What should not happen is that both groups record themselves as completing all of the work. 

For example, if two groups co-operate on training 10 people to gain a certificate, we cannot have each of them claim full credit, with a total claim made that 20 people were trained to certificate level – rather the groups must have broken down the work and claimed the proportion of the outputs associated with the actual work they provided.