Agenda item

Presentation of Valerie De Souza, Consultant Public Health

Councillor Mal Mutton, Cabinet Member for Adult Services will report at the meeting

The Board received a presentation from Pete Fahy, Director of Adult Services and Valerie De Souza, Consultant Public Health which provided an update on the Voluntary Community Sector (VCS) and Health and Care Partnership (HCP).

The presentation referred to the rich, vibrant and diverse Voluntary Community Sector in Coventry which included large influential organisations and hundreds of smaller community groups, many of which continued without council involvement. It was an organic environment which changed dependant on the issues to be address and the capacity to contribute. A major issue was that there was no single organising or co-ordinating ‘voice’ which made representation on the Board difficult. It was a priority with the Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy and the NHS 5-year forward view explicitly mentioned the role of VCS organisations in supporting health and well-being. However, there was no clear blue-print for developing this partnership. There was a strong system-wide commitment to develop the relationship between the HCP and VCS organisations and to support a sustainable sector and working in partnership. There were numerous examples of working with and engaging elements of the VCS on specific issues, projects and priorities. Reference was made to the Kings Fund model with the four quadrants which impacted on all areas of work.

The presentation gave examples, including details, of VCS partnerships in Coventry as follows:

·  Social prescribing commission

·  iBCF funded Community Capacity and Resilience Pilot

·  Community Navigator Project.

Details were also provided of examples of VCS partnerships with the HCP:

·  Kings Fund and National Lottery-funded Health Communities Programme

·  Coventry Place Long Term Conditions: taking a whole-system approach to pathway development including input from specialist VSO providers where appropriate.

The Covid response had provided a unique opportunity to quickly mobilise and support the VCS to support the most vulnerable. It had resulted in a wide ranging, innovative and flexible response, creating an ‘equal’ partnership and creating funding opportunities for smaller groups. It had allowed the mobilisation of smaller community groups without the need for complicated funding arrangements and complicated processes.

Moving forward consideration needed to be given to the issue that strong examples were often based on action round a specific issue, not system-wide involvement, which could be perceived as a gap. Also, that aside from VAC, there was no single co-ordinating force or voice within the city.

It was recommended that consideration be given to the establishment of a Health and Wellbeing Board Task and Finish Group focussing on:

·  What could representation at HWBB level look like

·  How could we move beyond the idea of representation/engagement with VCS to one of active and fair partnerships

·  What way does the sector want to be represented and engaged with

·  Are there more innovative ways to forge relationships.

Members discussed the complexities associated with having so many individual excellent voluntary groups across the city without an overarching organisation to bring them all together. The importance of having appropriate representation on the Board was acknowledged, along with the need to make best use of all the good opportunities that existed. Members expressed support for the setting up of a Task and Finish Group to progress the issue.

RESOLVED that approval be given to the establishment of a Task and Finish Group to consider the Voluntary Community Sector, with the focus for the Group as set out above.