According to the LTU Recommendation, MSs remain competent to choose the labour market measures best suited to their individual situation. A range of actors can be involved in provision of a Single Points of Customer Contact (SPOC) including:

SPOC may be based upon various models of cooperation, tailored to the specific needs of the MS, taking into account the capabilities and scope of the partners. One actor will have responsibility for ensuring provision of a SPOC (in most cases from one organisation). This will need to be determined, and the roles and responsibilities for developing the service model, including the case records system, determined between participating actors.

The depth of service integration may range from voluntary, occasional co-operation to providing services in a united organisational framework. The optimal depth of integration will depend on the relations between the services, as well as the institutional constraints.

The range of services to be integrated can best derived from identifying the needs of the jobseekers. As a first step there should be a systematic analysis of the labour market needs and integration barriers of LTU clients, e.g. counselling on benefit claims, advice on health problems or debt. Then the services most closely related to employment services and each other should be identified. Finally, the obstacles to the integration process should be considered and the scope of integration limited to a range of services whose integration is manageable, given the constraints of the institutional context.

The depth of integration may vary according to the service integrated. The overall strength of non-integrated services and degree of coordination in public administration should be considered. Where services are dissimilar and existing provision weak, it may be advisable to initially develop less ambitious plans.

There can be advantages if the lead organisation has a labour market integration focus, and a dispersed local network. In very localised systems, it may be sensible for municipal actors to lead.

There is a significant risk to integrating systems where no single partner feels accountable for the actions of the partnership because of the shared responsibility.

In order to ensure that records provide a holistic, comprehensive, and logical set of data concerning an individual client’s situation, it is important to avoid duplication of inputs. As well as one lead agency having responsibility for maintenance of the joint database, all partners should contribute to the development of a client path.