Participatory Budgeting – Southampton’s experience ‘Your Health, Your Community, Your Vote’ 28 th June 2008

The context Southampton’s New Deal for Communities programme £48.7m to spend over 10 years Led by a partnership board Delivered according to themes

Thornhill Community Health Group funding Joint initiative with Southampton City PCT to build a new health clinic in Thornhill

NDC return on funding for health clinic - £100,000 a year for 10 years Overseen by Thornhill Community Health Group – PCT, Southampton City Council, Thornhill Plus You, residents

Participatory budgeting - timescales December 2006 – idea first discussed in Thornhill February 2007 – agreement from Community Health Group to develop PB June 2007 – PB planning day with representative from the PB Unit

January 2008 – Agreement from Southampton City Council and Southampton City PCT to go ahead March 2008 – Southampton named as one of 10 pilots June 28 th, 2008 – ‘Your Health, Your Community, Your Vote’ event

Stakeholders SCC and local PCT, Thornhill Plus You, residents Staff time, resources for the event, approval for spending money this way Some suspicion at first Public involvement agenda used as leverage Named by Hazel Blears – no going back!

Objectives for the pilot Empower local groups to bid for money for and manage health related projects Increase resident participation in decision making which should be both engaging and enjoyable Establish processes and accountability lines that are clear, concise and productive

Develop effective support and project planning mechanisms (e.g. monitoring, establishment of criteria and use of qualitative feedback from residents) Test new ways of involving communities in managing resources and transferring this knowledge to other neighbourhoods

The process Applications invited for projects bidding from £1,000-£10,000, which have health objectives 22 applications received, totalling £134, Applications subject to a brief appraisal

The event 18 presentations, 3 minutes long Projects on the day totalled £93,559 Transport and childcare provided Lunch and entertainment Prize draw linked to evaluation forms 60 residents attended Local dignitaries – Councillors, local Sergeant, John Denham MP Media coverage

ProjectTotal ScoreFunding £ Crafty Crafters218 2,000 Anti-bullying Programme206 5,000 Our Lives, our health, improving our life chances197 5,853 Summer Fun!196 1,423 Looking out for me186 3,600 Water Walkers179 1,345 Health Kicks176 5,000 Street Sport176 8,650 Eyes on Thornhill173 8,000 The Star Project171 9,764 Teen Pregnancy Show169 3,825 Sun Safety168 1,000 Sprint Start Healthy Kids Programme166 7,580 Healthier Options166 1,000 REACH Thornhill165 7,550 EMPOWERing You!139 9,409 Community Building Family Links135 9,500 Keep Fit today!134 3,060

Resources £10,000 provided to fund the event Task group set up to oversee organisation of the day Appraisal team Support for applicants Approximately 500 hours involved

Evaluation – residents responses ‘I think it was good for the Thornhill community. I wish I had it when I was young, I have lived here for 44 years.’ ‘well done, do it again’ ‘ I think it’s important for the general public to have a say in these projects’ ‘Big thanks for making my vote count’

Resident’s responses… ‘We need more of this type of event’ ‘It was good to see the faces behind the projects’ ‘A good day for everyone who attended’ ‘More events like this please!’ ‘Why has it taken us so long to hit on this way of doing things??!! Well done – a great success!!’

Applicants responses ‘It was a privilege to participate. We got to speak to real people. Now we know the community are keen on the idea, it has given us confidence.’ Action for Blind People ‘A very fair approach that fits into the NHS vision of people having a say. It was fair and transparent.’ Sun Safety

‘Not a fair way to allocate funding. Process is open to abuse, especially if large amounts of funding are at stake.’ Unsuccessful project ‘Really good fun, would definitely do it again. It was nerve-wracking but a very friendly atmosphere.’ Water Walkers ‘It was a remarkable experience, I enjoyed the challenge. I can’t express how impressed I was, this is the first time I’ve seen a community participation project that was successful.’ YMCA

My evaluation of the day People are generally suspicious of this approach Good organisation is crucial to the success of the day Don’t forget about having fun! Don’t get too bogged down with issues around representation – what is the alternative? Transparency of the process