Hello our names are Hilary and Jo Photograph of Jo BakerPhotograph of Hilary Thompson

We started in our new roles in March 2020 working in the Partnership’s Harnessing the Power of Communities Programme (HPoC).

We were just settling in as COVID-19 forced us all into lockdown……

As we adjusted to remote working, the workload of HPoC rapidly began to grow as the voluntary and community sector (VCS) and volunteers responded quickly and adapted to play a key role in the response to the pandemic. And we haven’t stopped since then! 

We want to share with you some of the highlights and challenges of recent weeks and how we are encouraged by the commitment of the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health and Care Partnership as we move into the reset and stabilisation phase to invest in more community based services and low level support, to encourage self-care and enable people to maintain their health and wellbeing at home and in their communities. 

This means investing in the VCS in a more sustainable and joined up way to ensure we reach some of the most marginalised and at risk communities. The VCS have the confidence and trust of communities. They are connected at a grass roots level and so able to deliver a key aspect of our strategy to tackle health inequalities and improve health and wellbeing outcomes for people – especially those who are most isolated and at greatest risk.

We came into HPoC with a great foundation to build upon, taking over the reins from Soo Nevison, CEO of Community Action Bradford and District. There had already been the investment of almost £2million into VCS organisations through HPoC and a leadership group in place representing the VCS across Bradford district and Craven; Calderdale, Harrogate, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield.  This is coupled with input, knowledge and representation of other key players in health and care, including Healthwatch.

The onslaught of COVID-19 meant our first job was to understand how we could support the sector to respond quickly to the crisis.

We provided weekly updates to share critical information and access to resources with our VCS colleagues and where possible we worked across West Yorkshire and Harrogate to connect delivery – for example sharing resources in other languages and filling gaps where more accessible resources did not exist. We promoted use of the ‘Plan B’ for unpaid carers and access to resources to support the mental and physical wellbeing of VCS staff and volunteers.

The remaining transformation funding was quickly redirected to the COVID-19 response, and with the support of the Partnership’s Executive Group and the Improving Population Health Programme, a further £500,000 was identified and has been allocated to charities and community organisations responding to COVID-19 including for those with mental health issues, Black Asian and minority ethnic groups, the elderly and frail, refugees and asylum seekers – to name but a few. You can read more here.

Volunteering has been front and centre of the local response as neighbours, communities, mutual aid groups, the voluntary sector, health and local authorities have worked together to support people who are shielding, and those who are isolated and need a helping hand or someone to talk to. 

In HPoC we have worked to connect people, and services and programmes, to these community volunteering hubs, both to become volunteers and to also access volunteer support. We also continue to work with the national NHS Volunteer Responders scheme to try and connect the national and local volunteer responses.

Digital exclusion has been a recurring challenge both for VCS organisations and for the people they work with. Many of our most at risk and isolated communities don’t have access to technology. HPoC has worked with the Partnership’s Digital Programme and local councils to begin to respond to this. There is some really useful insight coming from our Healthwatch colleagues, for example in Leeds, on the take up of digital technology during COVID-19, so watch out for that once its published.

Facebook donated 100 portals which we placed in care homes and supported housing. These have been a lifeline to many, linking residents to their families. 

In HPoC we want to see vibrant, sustainable and resilient communities, right across our partnership.  Communities where citizens, the voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector, and other partners, come together to plan, develop and deliver innovative solutions for the benefit of the whole population. To make that happen we need long term joined up investment in our VCS. HPoC is committed to making that a reality and we hope you will be part of that journey to change how we do things and focus more time and resource on prevention, self-care and keeping communities at the centre of all we do.

We published our latest report, titled ‘Third Sector Resilience: Before and during COVID-19’ two weeks ago. Working closely with over 300 voluntary and community organisations across Bradford district and Craven; Calderdale, Harrogate, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield, the report sets out the impact of COVID-19 on the sector and the communities they support. A life line too many of the 2.7million people living across the area; community groups, charities and voluntary organisations have been delivering vital services for many years, including additional focus on the 111,000 people who are shielding.

Building on the long term work of the VCS across communities, the report highlights that for many charities and community organisations their future is now uncertain. The financial position of many is under immense pressure and for many digital capacities is a barrier to their work.

Over 300 VCS organisations employing over 7000 members of staff and thousands of volunteers, responded to the West Yorkshire and Harrogate survey.  Many of the organisations who took part in the survey cited digital exclusion as a challenge in their work, impacting on their ability to reach some of the most at risk and isolated communities. Positives highlighted in the report  include the fast tracking and flexibility of service commissioning and delivery between health, local authorities and the VCS, meaning services can respond quickly and everyone works together to make things happen at greater pace.

The Partnership has also enabled its priority programmes of work to align funding for VCS provider collaboration, for example the new Grief and Loss Support Service and ‘Keeping people with a learning disability or autism connected to vital support during Covid-19’. 

On Friday 10 July we held the first in what will be a series of virtual events for colleagues and other stakeholders from across West Yorkshire and Harrogate. Guest speakers and partnership colleagues from all sectors and all communities came together to share thoughts, learning and provoke debate about community resilience before, during Covid-19 and moving forward.

You can catch up on a video of the event here. Due to the success of this first event, we will be planning another to take place in October – please watch out for that.

We have a “can do” approach and always do things with a ”big heart”, whilst respecting the parameters of the wider system of which we are a vital part.

We want to harness the power of our communities and of our VCS and as we reset how we do things as a partnership, each of you can play your part in making this happen.

Have a safe and enjoyable weekend - be kind to yourself and others

Hilary and Jo