Alex Fox, CEO at Community Catalysts, talks about practical ways we can make the vision of neighbourhood health a reality.

Government and public services are waking up to the huge untapped potential of neighbourhoods as the place to build the capacity, connections and infrastructure that we need to enable people to live well. What people are not always so clear on is what that means in practice.

I recently heard a local social care leader dismiss the Neighbourhood Health Programme (NHS England’s bold plan to transform the health and care system by creating a neighbourhood health service that delivers more care closer to home) as ‘neighbourhood soup’. That’s not entirely fair: the vision for what a more neighbourhood-based health system will look like are relatively clear: more local hubs with multi-agency teams in which NHS, collaboration of councils and community organisations, and a stronger focus on reaching people early, with support that helps them to live well at home.

But it does tap into a lack of clarity I’ve heard from a number of councils about what will make this change a reality at a time when local, regional and national NHS teams are shrinking rapidly, and some NHS national and local teams feel increasingly medically, rather than socially, focused.

So how do we build that vision, and ensure it becomes a reality, no just a slogan? At our Neighbourhoods for Living Well event in partnership with the National Innovation Centre for Ageing, we heard about initiatives that do just that.

Through our Community Micro-enterprise Development Programme, areas are backing hundreds of new micro-enterprises, founded by local people who want to use their skills to support their neighbours and people in their area. They are providing  safe and affordable support, but also so much more. Many help older people to live well at home, getting the practical help they need, while also pursuing more connected or active lives. This has knock-on physical and mental health benefits despite the lower unit cost when compared to traditional home care agencies. Others, like Julie’s Strolls with Poles, are taking a creative approach to health: Julie supports people with Parkinson’s and other mobility challenges to access the countryside. It’s one of hundreds of enterprises that advertise for free on our Small Good Stuff directory.

At the early action and prevention end of the Neighbourhood Health spectrum we heard from South Tyneside which is replacing a traditional ‘crisis and escalator’ model with Local Area Coordination (LAC), to build support with and around people so that people who need support and their local council can draw on all kinds of formal and informal support, not just over-stretched public services. Local Area Coordinators reach and connect people directly, and also support them to build new community activities and resources that multiply the benefits.

These are just two examples of low-cost, practical work that is already happening to make neighbourhood health a reality.

If you want to find out how to nourish neighbourhoods in your area, get in touch.