Agenda item

To provide an update to the Audit Committee on the progress of actions identified in the Mid-term Annual Governance Statement in relation to community engagement.

The Committee considered a report in relation to current community engagement activity that was presented by Dr Rajpura. This followed a request by the Committee at its meeting on 19 January 2017, for further information regarding the actions identified in the mid-term Annual Governance Statement in relation to community engagement.

Dr Rajpura began by explaining that Community Engagement activity had recently moved directorates in response to a changing landscape across the Public, Voluntary and Community Sectors and following the successful allocation of £300,000 in the Fylde Coast

Vanguard (NHS) for Community Engagement. It was hoped that the move would allow a greater synergy between the Vanguard work, the Fairness Commission (the management of which was also governed by Public Health) and the Council’s Community Engagement work and would allow for a more seamless approach, which in the long term would reduce duplication and ensure things were joined up across all partner organisations.

Dr Rajpura explained that the Fairness Commission was now the primary vehicle for community engagement across the town. Membership of the Fairness Commission Board was heavily weighted towards the Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector with 43% of the Board members being Voluntary Sector Leaders. Board membership also included the Chief Executive of Blackpool Council, Chief Executive of Blackpool Teaching Hospitals, Chief Superintendent of Police, a GP representing Primary Care and the Director of Public Health as Chairman.

Ms Bennett went on to outline a number of recent community engagement activities led by the Fairness Commission, including;

• A Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector Showcase Event in March 2017 – An event where over 50 Voluntary and Community Organisations showcased their activities.

• Easter Buddies – A network of seven coffee mornings which took place across the town during the two weeks of Easter. The events were designed to connect people and combat social isolation and loneliness. 

·         Kindness Convention and Acts of Kindness Campaign – The 2017 Acts of Kindness Campaign would be launched in June with a Kindness Convention at the Winter Gardens. The purpose of the Campaign and the Event would be to explore what Communities could do to support and help each other. Dr Rajpura explained that there was a great deal of evidence to suggest that where Communities were able to create a “buffer” around each other it made people more resilient during times of crisis and gave them greater coping strategies and support networks, therefore  lessening their dependency on public sector services.

Ms Bennett went on to give details of the Community Orientated Primary Care Project which had now been introduced as part of the Vanguard work, intended to provide a huge amount of qualitative data from the participants. It was explained that a group had been formed from 12-15 people who were brought together from the Community and encouraged to work with mixed agencies over several weeks to share what would make the greatest difference to their health and wellbeing. The first of these programmes ran in the Central West area of Blackpool and had been hugely successful with the participants opting to stay together as a taskforce and community action group going forward. There were plans in place to roll the programme out across five other areas over the course of the next 12 months. In response to questions from the Committee about the expectations of the participants, it was stressed that a jointly produced multi-agency action plan would result, based around the issues discussed by the group that would have the most impact upon health and care. In connection with questions from the Committee about resources, Dr Rajpura explained that the Vanguard project was funded via NHS England and the solutions were being designed alongside the people involved.

The Committee gave its broad praise for the March 2017 showcase event and asked it was possible for it to become a more regular occurrence. Dr Rajpura stated he hoped to be able stage it every 6 months, whilst emphasising the importance of the involvement of the voluntary sector as being a key part of the project going forward, based upon neighbourhood footprints.

Responding to questions from the Committee about the development and synergy of the Community Orientated Primary Care Project, Ms Bennett explained that the individuals involved had gained more confidence as time went on and had developed into a cohesive group. A big difference had been noted from start to finish and the participants had become very much engaged in the democratic process.

The Committee discussed further possibilities for community engagement methods and signposting, including the use of GP surgeries. Ms Bennett explained that a GP from Layton had now joined the Fairness Commission and work was being undertaken with the GP’s surgery to extend the premises for community purposes, with a view to improving social isolation amongst the community.

The Committee sought assurances from Dr Rajpura that community engagement would not be overly weighted in favour of a public health bias, given that the responsibility for activities now sat with Public Health. He responded by explaining that the Community Orientated Primary Care Project in Talbot Ward had been framed in the broadest way possible. It was not focussed purely on health matters, but on the wider social determinants of a person’s health and wellbeing.

The Committee agreed:

1.      To note the report.

2.      To request an update report on Community Engagement in 12 months’ time.

Background papers: None.