Community social work, community assets and Neighbourhood Network Schemes Putting Prevention First: Delivering the Vision for Adult Social Care and Health

Setting the scene – What we’re doing and why

Context Problems we need to address and solve: Unsustainable costs and demand on social care and health services and the system as a whole; Poor experiences for both citizens and social workers (as well as healthcare practitioners such as GPs); Things are getting worse, not better – the system isn’t working; Opportunities to seize and assets to recognise: Enthusiasm and support for change across all stakeholders; Much of the demands on the social care and health system can be prevented through focusing on social isolation, loneliness, frailty and quality of life; Lots of evidence about what works, it’s just not been implemented yet in Birmingham; Valuing the important role of community groups, networks and organisations in neighbourhoods.

Prevention First: Our vision Citizens lead healthy, happy, independent lives within their own homes and communities

Prevention First outcomes

Our principles and pillars for delivery Investing in prevention and community assets Strengths and assets based practice – citizens and communities Partnership approach across the Council and external stakeholders Place based approach around neighbourhoods, Constituencies and localities Evidence base for what works and the impact of prevention Change of direction and culture to current ways of doing things – disrupting the current system Community Social Work: Three Conversations Model to implement a more strengths, assets and community based approach to practice Constituency and Locality based working and teams to increase the visibility and presence of social workers in the community and community networks Community Assets: Places to go, people to meet and things to do Developing relationships, support and joint approaches with individuals, groups or organisations who/which is doing something, delivering an activity, project or service in a neighbourhood setting which older people can benefit from

Neighbourhood Network Schemes – a brief summary They’re about older people and communities (not specifically including younger adults with disabilities at this stage) Universally accessible assets and activities, which older people can benefit from Assets and activity specifically for older people Constituency based networks Bringing together voluntary, community and social enterprise sector organisations and groups, as well as statutory agencies to engage with, work with and support older adults and communities Organised by a “lead facilitator” with delegated responsibilities and budgets from Birmingham City Council to implement and manage the Neighbourhood Network Scheme in each Constituency They will: Invest in and support the development of community assets, as well as the individuals, groups and organisations who are delivering community activity Connect, broker and link community assets to citizens and statutory agency practitioners (e.g. social workers and GPs) Locally commission activity through a micro and small grants scheme – building the community offer and/or making it more accessible for older people Contracts and budgets: Contracts awarded for Lead Facilitators for a minimum of two years , from December 2018 Budget of £170,000 to £280,000 per Constituency to cover staffing, management, investment in support for community assets, as well as local commissioning of activity through micro and small grants Evidence based – building on: Successful model in Leeds which is supporting 23,000 older adults per year (operating to a Ward model) Evidence across community development, social prescribing, community investment and support, citizens, health and wellbeing

THE neighbourhood network SCHEME MODEL – how it will be delivered

Developing something around what works: Being more creative and flexible in funding activities which can support care and health needs, particularly looking towards arts, culture, physical activities which people can enjoy; Community networks, peer to peer opportunities and people’s connectedness to other people and places where they live (or communities of interest); Coordination of activity across agencies and stakeholders within the prevention agenda. This is becoming an increasingly busy area of work with risks of duplication and counter-productive and/or competitive activity between agencies; Coordinators, connectors, navigators, mentors and similar types of roles which can connect and encourage citizens to access appropriate and relevant support and activities Coproducing models and approaches with citizens, communities and providers, taking an asset based approach for better outcomes and systems; Digital inclusion and capability to provide accessible information about community assets, ideas, activities and groups for both citizens and practitioners working with citizens; Evaluating and measuring the impact/value of community based activity on traditional social care and health outcomes, but linked to this both citizen and community wellbeing; Individuals, assets, micro-enterprises, small charities and little ideas which can cumulatively make a difference and enable social action in neighbourhoods; Places having different needs and dynamics, which require different types of support and investment. This is particularly acknowledging the differences between places with high social action and those with low social action; Joint approaches with regional and national funders to address shared problems, outcomes and aspirations; The trust and credibility issue between the VCSE sectors and the Council, particularly ensuring that strategic messaging is reflected in how the Council operates.

NNS activities – brief guide: Find, map and engage community assets in the “Prevention First” approach Support community groups and organisations to sustain and build current capacity and offer, as well as to build wider skills Support community social work practice by linking community assets to older people and social workers Support other agencies interested in linking community assets to older people Commission community activity through micro and small grants (building the community offer and/or making it more accessible to older people) Develop and support a partnership steering group to locally direct and drive NNS and Prevention First approach Support the development of new ideas and ways of supporting citizens Be part of the development of a citywide model for NNS

Design, development and specification

Who are the Neighbourhood Network Schemes for? Assessed level of need/Different types of support and approaches – for older people dependent on services At risk/Early intervention – preventing older people from becoming dependent on services Everybody/Prevention – for people not yet known to services but who could benefit from being better connected and more active in their neighbourhoods Who are the Neighbourhood Network Schemes for?

Community assets and activities Could be any of the following: Arts & Culture Clubs Community events Community groups and networks Digital skills and capability Enablement Handyman and gardening Physical activity Social media networks Sport Outcome driven: Increase social participation Encourage healthy lifestyles Maximised income Housing which supports independence Carers feel more supported Citizens have a better experience of the social care and health system

Investing in community assets and communities Working with community groups, organisations and individuals to sustain and grow their offer Directly supporting or funding support for community groups and organisations covering, e.g: Governance Fundraising and business planning Marketing and promotion Measuring and evaluating activity Directly supporting or funding support for individuals, groups, organisations and communities, e.g: Digital inclusion, culture and capability Social enterprise Coproduction Volunteering Safeguarding

Supporting community social work and the Three Conversations approach

Investing in activities not services Approach being taken is about developing active participation not passive consumption of services Developing aspiration, not servicing needs Developing human and social capital , as well as independence Citizens make communities, not consumers Definition of a service: the action of helping or doing work for someone Definition of an activity: a thing that a person or group does

Local commissioning Local budgets of approximately £100K-£200K per year for each Constituency Building a relevant and accessible community offer for older people: New activity where there are gaps Increasing the accessibility of existing activity for new people Informed by ideas and intelligence from community social work practice (Mostly) activities not services – supporting lots of smaller community activity for cumulative impact £1-£10,000 with a proportionate process to match A couple of examples from Leeds: Handyperson activity to help with garden and house repairs to help people stay health and active in their own homes – as a small local service and/or a volunteer activity DVD film club that was set up through investment in a DVD player which brought older people in the locality.

Stakeholders and partners Arts and culture networks – from the local arts fora Birmingham City Council Locality and Constituency Social Work Teams; Neighbourhoods & Communities (including Neighbourhood Development & Support Unit, Libraries, Community Centres, Advice); Cultural Development Service. Citizens Elected representatives including Councillors and/or MP (as a community representative) Financial Inclusion Partnership and network members Housing provider(s) – including Birmingham City Council Housing and/or Registered Providers (identified through Birmingham Social Housing Partnership) NHS Birmingham & Solihull CCG Locality Team and GP Practices; NHS Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust Regional and national funders Sport Birmingham and network members The Active Wellbeing Society (TAWS) Voluntary and community sector organisations West Midlands Fire Service West Midlands Police Network of stakeholders and partners NNS Constituency Steering Group/Partnership Board Communications and engagement plan/activity

Places – priorities and opportunities to have the biggest impact

Analysis of three key areas Adult social care and health demand – potential impact and benefit Contacts with ACAP which lead to assessments Services provided to over 65s Community investment and assets – breadth and depth of community groups and organisations Number of organisations accessing grants of £10,000 or less Total value of grants of £10,000 or less Deprivation – capacity for citizens to invest in communities By deciles and compared to the City and national average

Opportunities and priorities Older person demand on social care services Acocks Green (Yardley) Bartley Green (Edgbaston) Billesley (Selly Oak) Bournville (Selly Oak) Brandwood (Selly Oak) Erdington (Erdington) Kingstanding (Erdington) Lozells and East Handsworth (Perry Barr) Shard End (Hodge Hill) Soho (Ladywood) Stechford and Yardley North (Yardley) Tyburn (Erdington) Weoley (Northfield) Combined: Billesley (Selly Oak) Stechford and Yardley North (Yardley) Weoley (Northfield) Acocks Green (Yardley) Bartley Green (Edgbaston) Brandwood (Selly Oak) Erdington (Erdington) Shard End (Hodge Hill) Tyburn (Erdington) Stockland Green (Erdington)

Funding formula The data analysis has been used to inform a funding formula, which identifies where the biggest impacts might be achieved, and where more funding might be needed to support the development of community activity. Constituency/Locality Funding per annum Edgbaston £200,000 Erdington £270,000 Hall Green £190,000 Hodge Hill £250,000 Ladywood £210,000 Northfield Perry Barr £240,000* Selly Oak £280,000* Sutton £180,000 Yardley £280,000 *excludes interim project activity, which was funded in the other eight Constituencies

OUTCOMES – what impact and difference do we want the neighbourhood network schemes to deliver/contribute to

Citizens and communities Theme Prevention First Outcomes How we might measure this – quantitative and qualitative Communities Access to a relevant and diverse community offer Access to more opportunities to participate in neighbourhoods Positive changes to the accessibility of activities and opportunities for people in or on the fringes of the care system Relevance of the community offer to what citizens require and would like to access through, e.g. social work conversations Positive changes to the number of individuals, groups and organisations active and contributing to “Prevention First” citizen outcomes Positive changes to the number of people accessing the community offer and participation opportunities Citizens Reduced social isolation Healthier lifestyles Maximised income Housing which supports independence Carers feel more supported (as people and as carers) Better experience of the social care system Making safeguarding personal Positive changes to citizens in the locality, e.g. income, health, citizens staying in their own homes Increases to the numbers of people participating in local groups and activities, particularly men Positive outcomes from NNS commissioned activity in the locality Positive changes to the breadth and depth of local citizen networks and connections Positive changes to the attitudes of citizens to staying active Positive changes to the attitudes of citizens towards their local community

System, behaviours and culture Theme Prevention First Outcomes How we might measure this – quantitative and qualitative System Reduced demand on statutory services Financial savings Additional investment Happier, more productive workforce Reductions in the contacts with the Adults & Communities Access Point (ACAP) for advice and guidance and/or referrals which don’t meet thresholds Reductions and changes to the projected need/demand for social care services Reductions in the projected cost of providing adult social care services Increases and changes to the levels of non-BCC investment in the locality to support groups and organisations – particularly those contributing to Prevention First and citizen outcomes Behaviours and culture Better internal partnership working across Council and NHS Better cross-sector partnership working between the statutory, voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors Embedding of a culture which focuses on and support the strengths, assets and positive outcomes for citizens Productive and collaborative local relationships between BCC, NHS, Police, Fire, Housing Providers, Voluntary Sector Organisations, Community Groups and other stakeholders Effective levels of engagement in the Neighbourhood Network Scheme as stakeholders and partners – including membership and involvement of the locality NNS partnership, as well as referrals/introductions to NNS Adoption of asset and strength based approach by local partners

TIMELINE

Phase 1 Research and Development Projects – July 2018 to January 2019 Edgbaston, Erdington, Hall Green, Hodge Hill, Ladywood, Northfield, Sutton, Yardley Constituencies Grant awards of £40,000 per Constituency Identify, map and speak to community assets to involve them in the Nhood Network Schemes and community social work; Facilitate contact and relationship building between community assets and social work teams; With the local social work teams reviewing and identify gaps in the community offer for older people; With community assets reviewing and identifying support needs and gaps for community orgs and groups Lead Facilitators start in Selly Oak and Perry Barr, via SLA – September 2018 to August 2020 Community assets Connecting, brokerage and relationships Local commissioning Local partnerships Innovation Fund – September 2018-March 2019 and April 2019-March 2020 Testing new ideas to Birmingham, the UK or in general (including new technology) Developing the evidence of what can work and how Options for scaling up and rolling out across Neighbourhood Networks

Phase 2 Procurement and contract awards NNS Lead Facilitators – September 2018 to February 2019 Procurement process starts from August Contract awards from December 2018 to January 2019 One or two “Lead Facilitators” per Constituency - Edgbaston, Erdington Hall Green, Hodge Hill, Ladywood, Northfield, Sutton, Yardley Contracts awarded and started for Lead Facilitators – February 2019 to January 2021 Community assets Connecting, brokerage and relationships Local commissioning Local partnerships NNS community development and infrastructure support – Summer 2019 onwards Approved providers who can provide skills, expertise and infrastructure support to community organisations and covering issues like co-design and co-production to support local commissioning, digital inclusion, micro and social enterprise, measuring impact, value and outcomes, volunteering, safeguarding Would be purchased /procured on an ad hoc basis through local Neighbourhood Network Schemes budgets

A few opportunities to get involved Providing services and activities via contracts and grants: NNS Innovation Fund for testing and trialling activity – from Summer 2018 Procurement process for Lead Facilitators – during September 2018 Local commissioning of community activity through micro and small grants – from early 2019 Funding for supporting voluntary and community sector development, as well as community skills – from summer 2019 Stakeholder or partner: Via Constituency NNS providers (Lead Facilitators or Development Projects) – from Summer 2018 Citywide NNS Forum – from Summer 2018 Constituency Steering Groups – from Autumn 2018

Contact Austin Rodriguez Commissioning Manager Adult Social Care & Health Email: austin.rodriguez@birmingham.gov.uk Telephone: 07557287605 Visit the blog via https://brumnns.wordpress.com