Litherland Prototype Update Report the Litherland Prototype Project Developed from the Early Intervention and Prevention Summit
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Litherland Prototype Update Report The Litherland Prototype project developed from the Early Intervention and Prevention Summit which took place on the 1st March 2016 with some key partners and some colleagues that have experience in this type of work in other areas. One of the actions that came out of that summit was that we could look at Litherland as an area for some closer working together – this was because of the wide range of valued organisations and services that are operating in the area and also because of the large number of physical capital assets that are concentrated in the patch. A scoping meeting took place scoping meeting at Rowan Park School on the 24th May where we discussed a new approach to working together in the area and improved outcomes for people and place. Multi-agency teams and hubs began to be explored as a way of responding to this but there was recognition that there needed to be a wider ownership of any vision and outcomes and joint commitment to work towards these first, and this would involve engaging with a wider grouping to allow for further exploration, experimentation and action. As agreed a smaller number of us met with industry expert Liz Goold on the 23rd July to start looking at the assets and barriers to developing partnership working in the Litherland area. We looked at specifically what it were wanted to try and achieve by working together. We came up with the follow shared vision and ambition: • Shared principles and values • Shared priorities and actions • Shared assets and resources • Shared leadership and learning We also articulated some very specific outcomes we wanted to achieve:- • Parents and families feel welcome and comfortable coming into the area, and, where there are fewer boundaries/fences prohibiting them. • Kids play outside, not stuck indoors. • Children and families aspire to being able to improve themselves and where children aspire to go to university. • Buildings and facilities are well used and are looked after by local communities, and, where there is a shared sense of ownership. • There are stronger relationships and fewer conflicts where people are less fearful of authority. • People live in their homes longer, with less moving about. • Children feel safe and well and people feel confident enough to self-refer. • Facilitation of parents going back into work after having their children • People have an overall sense of confidence in the place, each other and themselves As well as looking at the vision and what we are trying to achieve by working together, we started to plan a wider engagement event that was scheduled for 28th September 2016, the (Litherland prototype Workshop) which involved around 100 internal Council departments and Partner Organisations coming together to start to draw out the detail of how organisations work in Litherland and how this impacts on the lives of the community. We also hoped to we would broaden the membership of the “Design Group” and engage with partners from a wider range of organisations. We agreed that the focus of this workshop needed to be more about how we get our act together as different agencies/partners and not step on each other’s toes, in service of these broad aspirations and initial principles - rather than trying to do a big community event. At the same time, perspectives from community members on how they experience the way agencies work and their relationship with them was seen as key – and so this voice/perspective would need to be part of any workshop. Some influential community members are also going to be identified as a contributor to the workshop. We even managed to come up with a catchy strapline of ‘a confident and connected Litherland’ as a vision for the future and talked about what we, as agencies and partners working there would need to do together to achieve this. It was recognised that we need to go wider and be really inclusive if we are to build ownership and commitment in taking any of these ideas further and also recognise that there is a wealth of data around the area already that could be useful. Questions were asked, such as, ‘If we worked differently, could we impact more positively on the life opportunities for local people, supporting them to make the most of their talents, skills and abilities?’ This led us to a rough set of principles which enabled us to work towards achieving: • Shared principles and values • Shared priorities and actions • Shared assets and resources • Shared leadership and learning • Shared trust and ownership by the community The Design Group agreed that to prepare for the workshop that each member would seek to have conversations with a 2-4 key stakeholders and influential players who are working in/relate to Litherland to help prepare the ground for the workshop on the 28th September. We saw these conversations as helping to prepare the ground for a larger workshop in a number of ways, for example, to help • Shape the design of the workshop to ensure relevance and ownership • Test out some of the initial aspirations and principles that have been developed • Gain feedback on what activities/initiatives that are already taking place to support a more confident and connected Litherland, what effect they are having, where the connections are and where the potential overlaps/disconnects are - what’s been tried before, what’s working, what isn’t and what’s contributing to that. What relationships need paying attention to? What’s been learned? • Gain perspectives on how community members experience the way they are related to/communicated with by other agencies including their own– what’s working and what isn’t • What may need to shift/change/ be let go of – if agencies/partners are to work in a more connected way- what could this look like in the future and how what could be tried out, what they see as their part/leadership in it. Examples of the questions which the Group preparer to assist with the conversations are outlined below:- • Tell us about what your organisation/agency are currently up to in Litherland- what’s working, and what’s not, and what’s contributing to that- what’s been tried out before and what’s been learned? How would you describe your relationship to other agencies/partners working on the same patch- and with the community itself? Where does your work connect/overlap – where does it disconnect? What do you feel proud about? What do you feel sorry about? How does some of the above relate to some of the aspirations and principles we’ve started to develop- do these speak to you? What might you add/change? For community members- how do you experience the way the different agencies/organisations working in Litherland work and relate with you and each other? What’s working, and what needs to be different in their approach together for Litherland to be a better place? What might an ideal scenario look like for agencies/partners working together differently in the future in relation to these? What will be needed for this to happen? What could be tested out in the immediate future? If you are able to make a workshop on 28th September to develop these ideas and actions further with others partners, agencies, community members who have a stake, what would successful outcome look like for you? What will be needed for you/others to contribute openly to it? Who else might need to be there? The invitation was sent out to Partners clearly highlighting the aims of the day (set out below) explaining the workshop had arisen out of a series of conversations between different partner agencies, organisations, community groups and individuals working and living in the Litherland area, and that from these conversations there was a clear recognition that there is wide range of organisations and services and physical assets in the patch- alongside capacities, experience and informal relationships (‘social assets’) within the community itself. There was also a recognition that a lot of good work is going on – often under increasing social and financial pressures. Aims of the Litherland Prototype Workshop • Map out where you currently work, the connections between you and share learning and insights from your work and experience in Litherland. • Share positive examples of collaboration and joint working that you feel proud of and what can be learnt from these. • Identify where the synergies and challenges/ pinch points are and what might need to shift or change as we face into an uncertain future. • Based on this, create some possible future scenarios/options and guiding principles about how different stakeholders could relate and work together differently or more effectively, in service of a more connected and confident Litherland. • Develop and agree some tangible experiments/ actions that can be tried out to take these ideas forward. The workshop was really interactive, creative and offered plenty of spaces for conversations to develop. Partners reported that they came away feeling more connected to each other and with a renewed sense of energy, ownership and commitment to taking forward ideas and actions agreed, as well as influencing a bigger conversation about joint working in Sefton. However there were also a number of barriers identified: Barriers to Success • The demographics of Litherland do not support a ‘central hub’ such as a shopping centre, and many services are spread out across the area. • Boundaries are blurred and certain pockets of the community do not realise they are part of Litherland. • Historic projects have started and stopped, which promotes negativity about the council’s commitment to invest resources in the area, and a fear that previous lessons have not been learned and mistakes will be repeated.