1. HCC’s Faith Event 16 November 2016
Summary of today’s case studies
Public health – Health improvement

2. CASE STUDY ONE – ‘Testing Faith’ Raising awareness of having Faith in HIV testing and its importance
Public Health commission Herts Aid to provide HIV/Sexual Health information as well as HIV testing high risk groups
Black African community are a high risk group, 47% of Hertfordshire residents aged 15+ living with diagnosed HIV were Black Africans
Herts Aid identified the need to train local Faith leaders
‘Testing Faith’: A partnership initiative to prove support to those affected and encourage HIV testing in general
During National Testing Week, an HIV testing event was held at The Open Heaven Church in Hatfield; where Pastor Elizabeth Kalonga spoke about living with HIV and her personal experience of stigma in the church and how it affected her position in her church
RESULT
- 41 people undertook the HIV test
- 28 (nearly 70%) people had never tested before
- participants were able to myth-bust and increase their knowledge about HIV
There are new treatment guidelines, published by the British HIV Association (BHIVA), which are in line with the recommendations by the World Health Organisation (WHO)
Over 8 million smokers in England
1 in 5 still smoke

3. CASE STUDY TWO – Mental Health Jami -The Mental Health Service for the Jewish Community launches Head Room
JAMI – helps members of the Jewish community who might be affected by mental health issues such as bi-polar affective disorder, schizophrenia, depression and eating disorders
JAMI focuses on recovery and gives the resources and necessary support to service users to live as ‘ordinary’ a life as possible
JAMI’s autumn 2016 prospectus launched ‘Head Room’ which gives information about events and courses in all aspects of mental health and well-being
Courses educate the Jewish community about mental health matters and offer practical seminars for service users living with mental health conditions
Here is a selection of what Head Room has to offer:
- Introductory course – an 8 week course to help improve and look after mental wellbeing
- Mental Health First Aid – designed to give a first aid response to people in distress or crisis
- Information seminars –to find out more about a specific mental health topic
- Community conversations –discussion based sessions on different topics
- A full day conference on family resilience is for the whole community and examine
family life and metal wellbeing within a family
For more information about Head Room; please go to:
Over 8 million smokers in England
1 in 5 still smoke

4. CASE STUDY THREE – ‘Volunteering’ The Harpenden Hopper – a community bus service
How partnership working between a County Councillor and members of faith communities can make things happen for the community in Harpenden
Potential of Community Transport for Harpenden due to the age profile of the population identified in 2011 URBAN TRANSPORT PLAN
Discussion between County Cllr Teresa Heritage, Andrew Buchanan, Cllr Rosemary Farmer: what would make difference to local community?
Andrew pulled together a like minded group from the local evangelical Christian churches
Established a Community Interest Company called ‘Harpenden Community Connect’
As a result:
The ‘Harpenden Hopper’ –pilot of 9 community bus service for those with limited coverage from existing bus services hop on/hop off service to Town Centre including 3 doctors surgeries and the Cottage Hospital in Harpenden
Over 8 million smokers in England
1 in 5 still smoke

5. CASE STUDY FOUR – Tobacco Control Raising awareness of tobacco control and Health Improvement
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the UK
79,100 people per year are killed in the UK due to smoking
Hertfordshire has approximately 159,000 smokers – according to the 2014 statistics
In , the NHS spent £55 million in providing smoking related services in Hertfordshire
Religion can influence attitudes towards tobacco use. E.g. chewing tobacco is embedded in many aspects o f South Asian cultures with symbolic implications at religious or cultural ceremonies.
Some BME people possess relatively poor knowledge about cigarette smoking and disease and to be less likely to cite smoking as a health risk than the UK population as a whole
Rushma Patel, Business Manager, Tobacco Control, Hertfordshire raised awareness of the role that tobacco control plays in Health Improvement amongst the Faith communities in October 2015.
Rushma shared her experience of how she involved some religious leaders in Newham and enlisted their help in raising awareness of the ham caused by tobacco
HIFF members cascade information through local networks
For more information about Hertfordshire Stop Smoking Service including recent campaigns and initiatives such as - Love your Bump, Wise up to Roll-Ups, Smokefree Homes and Cars, Smokefree school toolkit, please visit
Over 8 million smokers in England
1 in 5 still smoke

6. CASE STUDY FIVE - Faith Advocates Supporting Fire & Rescue to raise awareness of fire safety
HFRS, in partnership with Hertfordshire Equality Council set up a County Community Advocacy Group to support its equality and diversity work
Volunteer representatives from diverse communities give advice about lifestyles, cultural issues and religious aspects which may have an impact on how the Fire Services engages with particular communities
The Community Advocates represent the demographics and represent Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam and Sikhism who assist the service. For example:
Sikh Activity Programme –reaching out to hard to reach members of the community due to language barriers
The Sikh Activity Programme was initiated by the Fire Service in the north of the county to increase awareness of fire safety among the Sikh community. Fire officers deliver fire safety messages and home fire safety check through their volunteer community advocates who act as interpreters when needed and help firefighters understand Sikh culture
Side by Side - promotes community safety and cohesion in Watford and Three Rivers, which are the most diverse districts in the county with a quarter of residents coming from black and ethnic minority backgrounds
For more information; please
Over 8 million smokers in England
1 in 5 still smoke

7.
Thank you