Waverley Borough Council
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WAVERLEY BOROUGH COUNCIL COMMUNITY OVERVIEW & SCRUTINY COMMITTEE – 14 JUNE 2016 Title: PERSONALISATION AND PREVENTION PARTNERSHIP FUND – END OF YEAR 3 - DELIVERY REPORT [Portfolio Holder: Cllr Jenny Else] [Wards Affected: All] Summary and purpose: In 2013, Waverley’s Executive approved the delivery of an Activity List of projects, funded by Surrey County Council. This aimed to provide locally driven, preventative services to support and empower vulnerable adults on a sustainable basis. This report is the annual review of the PPP projects from 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016. It notes current progress, performance and the success of the Council’s wellbeing approach in empowering the borough’s communities and supporting its most vulnerable residents. The Community Overview and Scrutiny Committee is asked to note the outcomes of the PPP process to date. How this report relates to the Council’s Corporate Priorities: The Council has been funded to deliver a range of projects aimed at supporting and empowering vulnerable adults. The projects cut across all corporate objectives and could fall in any of the priority areas. In addition, by demonstrating success to Surrey County Council and meeting the PPP High Level outcomes, Waverley could expand on its Health and Wellbeing remit and be commissioned to deliver further work areas in this field. Financial Implications: There is likely to be a reduction in Waverley’s PPPF allocation in 2016/17. We have asked Surrey County Council to provide £100,000 in 2016/17, offering a reduction of £80,000. The commissioners are yet to confirm whether or not we will be receiving £100,000 as proposed, and it is possible that we could receive less or have funding withdrawn completely. However, the existing resources associated with the PPP Fund have been ring-fenced so that projects can continue as planned and laid out in this report, even if funding is withdrawn. Legal Implications: There are no direct legal implications associated with this report. Background 1. As part of the Personalisation, Prevention and Partnerships (PPP) agenda, Waverley Borough Council’s (WBC) Executive approved an Activity List of projects that meet the programme’s High Level Outcomes by supporting and empowering vulnerable adults across the Borough. 2. This programme is funded by a series of temporary grants from Surrey County Council Adult Social Care (SCC ASC). Initial funding was received towards the end of the 2012/13 financial year in the form of a first instalment of £150,000. Further funding was received for the 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16 financial years at £180,000 per annum. 3. Whilst originally a five year fund until the end of the 2016/17 financial year, there is now uncertainty regarding the final year of the PPP fund. In the face of significant financial pressures, Surrey County Council is reviewing its grant funding. It is possible that Waverley’s PPP Fund will be withdrawn. WBC is working with Surrey County Council to ensure the needs of residents continue to be met. 4. Due to Waverley’s efficient financial and project management throughout the life of the fund, the existing resources associated with the PPP Fund have been ring- fenced so that projects can continue as planned and laid out in this report for 2016/17, even in the absence of further funding. This will protect our valuable relationships with our partners and the health and wellbeing of our communities. 5. From the outset of the PPP fund, due to its temporary nature, all projects were designed with sustainability at their core. This means that suitable exit strategies are in place to ensure that their legacy is maintained beyond the life of the fund. 6. Progress updates were presented to Community Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 10 March 2014 and 17 March 2015. The Committee noted the outcomes of the progress made to date. Headlines for each PPP theme for 2015/16 7. Sustainability. Several organisations have already begun implementing the exit strategies for their projects, in order to ensure the projects’ legacies are continued beyond the life of the PPP fund. These include: a. Age UK Surrey, who delivers the Farnham Making Connections project. This project is partly funded by North East Hampshire & Farnham Clinical Commissioning Group (NEH&F CCG), along with PPP funds. NEH&F CCG have agreed to fully fund the project through their Vanguard programme from July 2016; b. Busbridge and Hambledon Church, who delivers the ‘Befriending Network’ and who are devising a range of services and activities which will deliver a small income. The proceeds of this will be reinvested into the continued delivery of the Befriending Network once their PPP funding expires in September 2017; c. WBC, whose Executive agreed an internally-funded, permanent Health and Wellbeing Officer post in April 2016 in order to sustain the health and wellbeing approach established during recent years. The postholder, whose role was previously funded through the PPP Fund, has recently been appointed to the permanent role; d. Voluntary Action South West Surrey, who deliver the ‘Welcome to Volunteering’ project and who are applying to the Big Lottery Reaching Communities fund to enable the continued delivery of the project beyond the expiry date of their funding; e. Godalming Town Council, who deliver the ‘Godalming Community Navigator’ Project and whose postholder is working to establish a Godalming Area Timebank. This will ensure that the legacy of community cohesion and support created during the life of the project is maintained once the project ends in July 2016. 8. Health and Wellbeing Officer: Central to the Council’s approach is to have an officer to coordinate and manage the programme of projects and drive forward their delivery. This post assists setting up and coordinating governance arrangements and the monitoring/evaluation of the programme’s success. The Health and Wellbeing Officer was appointed to post in July 2015 on an 18 month contract, succeeding the PPP Project Coordinator who left the post in May 2015. The postholder has recently been reappointed on a permanent contract. 8.1. Responsibilities and achievements include: a. Programme management of the PPP related projects; b. Coordinated the successful application for £180,000 of PPP funds in 2015/16 from Surrey County Council; c. Coordinated the Waverley Health and Wellbeing Partnership’s Systems Leadership: Local Vision programme, including the management of a high-level workshop held in March 2016; d. Supporting the delivery of the Council’s Ageing Well Strategy; e. Leading on the development, implementation and delivery of the Waverley Health and Wellbeing Strategy; f. Supporting the Dementia Friendly Towns initiative; g. Supporting the Healthy Children’s Centres initiative, including sitting on the verification panel; h. Supporting the coordination of childhood and adult obesity projects. 9. Community/volunteering/Social capital highlights: Due to Waverley’s geography as a predominately rural borough with an ageing population, social isolation of vulnerable individuals was identified as a key concern. 9.1. In September 2014, a Befriending project was commissioned through the Busbridge and Hambledon Church. The ‘Befriending Network’ connects socially isolated older residents with volunteers. To date, more than 100 referrals have been received. In recognition with their work with older people, Busbridge and Hambledon Church were awarded runner up prize in the March 2016 finals of the Love Britain & Ireland Awards in the “Work with Older People” category. 9.2. A ‘Welcome to Volunteering’ project works with organisations to improve their volunteering opportunities for those with learning difficulties, mental health challenges and physical disabilities. The project is commissioned through Voluntary Action South West Surrey and has: a. Developed 72 volunteering roles to date; b. Successfully placed 58 individuals in volunteering roles. 9.3. A Mentoring and Adult Learning project for Cranleigh launched in August 2015, commissioned through Surrey Care Trust. This project consists of one- to-one mentoring, delivered by trained volunteers and adult learning to help meet the needs of isolation and mental health identified in Cranleigh East. To date, the project has: a. Established referral routes including Homestart, the Foodbank, Cranleigh Children’s Centre, VASWS, Waverley Family Support Team and Home School Links Workers; b. Received 21 referrals (on track to reach target of 30 by August 2016). 9.4. Farnham Making Connections, a social prescribing project, launched in July 2015. This project was jointed funded through Waverley Borough Council’s PPP funds and North East Hampshire & Farnham Clinical Commissioning Group (NEH&F CCG). It aims to support vulnerable residents to access services and support that enable them to live as independently as possible for as long as possible, preventing individuals from entering into ‘substantial’ or ‘critical’ adult social care services in Farnham. Due to the success of the project, the Clinical Commissioning Group has rolled-out the service to its North East Hampshire localities. Furthermore, when the project’s PPP funding expires in July 2016, NEH&F CCG will continue to fund the project for one year through its Vanguard programme. 9.5. Farnham and Godalming Area Timebanks are currently being established. Timebanking is a system which can help combat social isolation and support community cohesion by offering people increased opportunities for social interaction and for helping one another. Timebanking allows people to exchange their time rather than goods or money. Participants offer and provide services to others (such as baking a cake, writing a CV or mowing the lawn) and receive Time Credits in exchange which they can then use to ‘buy’ other services. Services are valued by time alone rather than any other qualitative measurements. For example, an hour of teaching someone to use a computer could be exchanged like for like with an hour’s gardening. The Farnham Area Timebank is being run from the Sandy Hill Community Bungalow, coordinated by the Bungalow’s Manager.