Building impactful partnerships: Insights from our ADEPT workshop on PPPs

We polled the room at the outset. The feedback showed that all of the delegates were open to experimenting with new forms of collaboration. There is a clear appetite for partnering. But there remains work to do to create meaningful public-private partnerships. This is especially true as local government reform and devolution in England impact local authorities and new combined authorities. This was highlighted through the words those in the room associated with PPPs.

Here were some of the positive words to describe PPPs:

• Collaboration
• Delivery
• Opportunity

And some of those that are less positive:

• Expensive
• Difficult
• Suspicious
• Complicated

There was a clear desire for more and better public-private partnerships for infrastructure projects. Alongside our fellow private-sector practitioners, we walked away with a greater appreciation of the pressures local government reform and devolution in England are placing on the public sector. We also got a better sense of potential solutions to challenges they face. Constructive premarket engagement and being open, honest, and communicative from the outset are key. The limitations and barriers of local politics, risk, and procurement were also recognised. It seemed as if we were almost seeing PPPs in action. Even if it was only a temporary collaboration for one hour.

Following are the questions we asked and our key takeaways from the discussion.

1. How can local government reform and devolution in England foster more effective public-private collaboration, and what risks or tensions might arise?

Local government reforms can create uncertainty and risk. In a tight market, the private sector carefully considers where it can invest time in bidding. Private-sector delegates made it clear that there are more attractive opportunities and fewer risks in other sectors outside of local government. One example is energy. As a result of these pressures, cost-driven, transactional relationships are at risk of emerging.

One suggestion: premarket engagement. The thinking was that it will encourage more effective relationships and better-quality delivery. Long-term funding settlements will positively impact the opportunities of PPPs and reduce the risks.

2. What barriers have you encountered when trying to collaborate with the private sector? And how might we overcome them collectively?

We heard two key barriers throughout discussions. These were:

• Procurement is a bit of a tricky issue. We need procurement before we can collaborate. But we need to consider the collaboration we want before we procure for infrastructure projects.
• Short political cycles are a problem. They undermine long-term working relationships. What we really need are political resilience, support across parties, and tangible performance monitoring.

In terms of culture, individual personalities are often what drive collaboration. But how do we promote a wider culture with a focus on working together and aligning priorities? Both sectors agreed we need to accept our varying priorities and find alignment. The public sector must recognise the private sector’s need for profit, certainty, trust, and sharing of risks. While the private sector must understand the public sector’s pressure points, including shifting priorities and the political landscape.

Both the public and private sectors tend to avoid risk, which can make it difficult to agree on a fair way to share it. Strong governance is also essential. When leaders are empowered and actively involved in contract decisions, they can help private partners better understand and respond to local priorities. These leaders act as a bridge between what communities need and what businesses aim to achieve.

Local government reform and ongoing devolution in England have drawn local authorities deep into managing change. This leaves them limited capacity to step back and focus on broader strategic goals. Many already face staffing pressures, years of austerity, and short-term funding cycles. And that means their attention is often spent simply to maintain essential services.

They also face other challenges, including:

• Growing risk aversion
• Procurement delays
• Pipeline visibility
• Potential overlaps within new combined authorities

Local authorities have been prevented from ‘looking up’ in recent years. Instead of planning, they’re often too busy managing change and limited resources. It puts limits on them when it comes to supporting vision-led collaboration.

3. How can we align public sector priorities with private sector incentives to create mutually beneficial partnerships?

Both sides need to understand each other’s drivers. Then, they work together to balance compliance with value creation. Achieving alignment will involve both sectors moving beyond transactional thinking. Instead, a focus on shared outcomes is required.

The public sector expects that contracts deliver within budget. There is little emphasis on incentives. Meanwhile, the private sector is frustrated with procurement processes perceived as a low-margin ‘race to the bottom’.

We can take practical steps to improve how the public and private sectors work together. For example, we can create forums where procurement regulations and commercial realities are shared. That leads to mutual understanding.

We need to shift away from price-driven procurement for infrastructure projects. When we reward innovation, sustainability, and performance—not just low cost—we help create long-term value for the public. And adopting early market engagement can encourage procurement. In turn, that will deliver positive outcomes—and allow for collaborative public-private partnerships.

What’s clear is that both sides need trust and transparency if they are to align. Working together and having honest conversations could help to shape public procurement to encourage the best outcomes for all parties.

4. What strategies can help build trust between public and private sector partners, especially in high-profile or politically sensitive projects?

Clarity and transparency are required from the outset. It’s important to share values, objectives, and timescales. It’s also important to understand the contractual position and implications. Having open discussions with all parties throughout a project and beyond is essential. And the parties must tackle any difficult dialogues early to avoid challenges mid-delivery. Both sectors need to understand each other’s context and challenges. They can then support each other. One way is through the provision of training to upskill colleagues.

Governance should enable collaboration rather than create barriers. We need to encourage keeping relationships positive through trust and open conversation. This will, in turn, tackle the public sector’s risk challenge.

5. How can public and private sector partners measure the success of their collaborations? And what approaches best demonstrate real impact for communities?

The public and private sectors often approach projects with different priorities. The private sector tends to focus on financial sustainability and securing future work. Public agencies are driven to deliver outcomes that create positive impacts for communities.

Because of these differences, it’s important to be clear about all the deliverables from the start. However, both sectors must align, including shared objectives and effective communication on progress.

We also need to look beyond the deliverables if we want to foster meaningful PPPs in infrastructure delivery. It is important to make time to build the relationship as well as move the project forward.

Building lasting connections: Next steps

In short, we won’t solve challenges overnight. But we believe the need to break down barriers to public-private partnerships is too important for our industry to ignore. And we’re committed to driving change where we can have influence. Local government reform and devolution in England bring with them not only challenges but also opportunities. So, now is the time to have these key conversations.

In 2026, we will bring together the public and the private sectors again. We’ll use the opportunity to share ideas, challenges, and co-create solutions that deliver real impact. We don’t expect to find all the answers, but we do hope to identify practical steps that can strengthen PPPs.