This paper will explore a community development project involving a peer support and advocacy network, Young Mothers for Young Women, to determine the challenges and barriers in the management of government-community sector partnerships. Young Mothers for Young Women has identified models of practice and policies that can make a difference to how services and young women engage with society. However, passing this information through the chain of relationships both within the community and government sector has proven to be problematic. The impact of competitive tendering, the complexity of the way in which government-community sector relationships are constructed, the practices of government in terms of policy making processes, and the issues surrounding the ownership of intellectual property will be examined. This paper will share some of the experiences, the learnings and possible ways of improving relationships so as to achieve better community and individual outcomes through informed policy and practice in the government and community sectors for people seeking assistance. Government-community partnerships offer an opportunity for community development and shifting power relations between government and community groups to a power-sharing partnership. However, if these relations are managed poorly or fail to promote development and empowerment, they may further entrench existing inequalities
