Agenda item

Martin Hughes, Head of Neighbourhoods to present

Martin Hughes, Head of Neighbourhoods, gave the following powerpoint presentation:-

 

Thriving Neighbourhoods Strategy

“Every neighbourhood in Rotherham to be a thriving neighbourhood where people are able to work together to achieve a good quality of life”

 

“Ensuring communities are at the heart of everything we do to make people feel happy, safe and proud”

Neighbourhood-strategy (rotherham.gov.uk)

 

What we want to achieve

-        Neighbourhoods that are safe and welcoming with good community spirit

-        Residents are happy, healthy and loving where they live

-        Residents have the opportunity to use their strengths, knowledge and skills to achieve what is important to them

 

Ward-based Model

-        25 Wards since May 2021

-        59 Elected Members

-        Mix of 2 and 3 Member Wards

-        Sit within 3 Localities (North, Central and South)

-        Range of services and partners aligned e.g. Neighbourhoods, Housing, Street Scene and South Yorkshire Police

 

Role of Councillors

-        Orchestrator

-        Steward of place

-        Advocate

-        Entrepreneur

-        Buffer

-        Catalyst

-        Sensemaker

 

The Neighbourhoods Team

-        Head of Neighbourhoods

-        3 full-time equivalent Neighbourhood Co-ordinators (North, Central and South)

-        12 full-time equivalent Neighbourhood Co-ordinators (named officer for each of 25 Wards)

-        3 full-time equivalent Neighbourhood Support Officers (North, Central and South)

-        Parish Council Liaison Officer

-        Town Centre Community Co-ordinator

-        Senior Communications Officer

 

Place-based Approach

-        Elected Members, Council services, Police, Parish Councils, community groups, residents and other stakeholders working collaboratively with a neighbourhood to:-

Tackle locally identified issues (Ward priorities/plans)

Bring communities together through a range of enjoyable activities, cultural and social events which inspired hope and pride in Rotherham

 

Integrated Working

Corporate Peer Challenge Recommendation – Building on the neighbourhood working model, develop a clearer and shared understanding of integrated locality working across the public sector

-        Establish a Thriving Neighbourhoods Workstream Board to oversee the continued development

-        Implement proposals to

Improve the effectiveness of the structures set up to tackle community safe, crime and anti-social behaviour was functioning across Wards and locality areas

Ensure roll out of Family Hubs was integrated into wider neighbourhood/locality working

Provide opportunities to promote Early Intervention and Prevention and tackle health inequalities across neighbourhoods/localities

-        Deliver a strength based approach learning and development programme for officers and Members

 

Ward Priorities and Plans

-        Elected Members set their Ward priorities after the May 2021 elections

-        Informed by Ward data, input, advice from Council services and partners and community intelligence/consultation

-        Updated annually – latest version published in June 2023

-        Ward plans detailed how the priorities would be tackled – targeted service delivery, projects, activities etc.

-        Inform Council and partners decision making, policies, strategies, service plans and resource allocation

-        New Ward priorities to be agreed after the May 2024 elections and published in Autumn 2024

 

Most Common Themes

-        Community safety and anti-social behaviour

-        Environment, parks and green spaces

-        Cleanliness of public realm and streets

-        Physical and mental health and wellbeing

-        Poverty/cost of living

-        Transport, roads and road safety

-        Community empowerment and infrastructure

 

Aim 1 – All children get the best start in life and go onto to achieve their potential

-        13 Wards referenced Children, Young People and Families

-        Kilnhurst and Swinton East Ward – activities in deprived areas, improving children’s play areas, school travel safety initiatives and engaging schools in local democracy

 

Aim 2 – All Rotherham people enjoy the best possible mental health and wellbeing and have a good quality of life

-        9 Wards referenced mental health

-        Hoober Ward – improve wellbeing by bringing people together whilst addressing loneliness, isolation and mental health – promote local activities, support existing community groups to set up a community networking partnership, continue to support bringing people together to prevent loneliness and isolation and promoting help and support available to residents particular in relation to the cost of living cost

 

Aim 3 – All Rotherham people live well for longer

-        3 Wards referenced supporting older people

-        Maltby East Ward – support residents health and wellbeing – promoting healthy lifestyle, support existing and new community groups, thrive and develop, supporting initiatives that improve older people’s quality of life and tackling loneliness and isolation in line with 5 ways of wellbeing

 

Aim 4 – All Rotherham people live in healthy, safe and resilient communities

-        All 25 Wards include priorities that impact on the wider determinants of health

-        Anston and Woodsetts Ward – cleaner streets, lanes and open spaces and protect the environment – work with Council services to encourage tougher enforcement on fly-tipping and littering, support and develop community initiatives to reduce litter, dog fouling and fly-tipping, ensure our green spaces were properly maintained and looked after and ensure that the voice of the community was heard in any proposed planning developments

 

Strengths-based Working

-        Being ‘strengths-based’ meant focussing on what people and communities had and how they could work together.  This involved drawing on people’s skills, knowledge and experience to improve things locally instead of looking at what a community needed or lacked

-        Recognised and built on the skills, resources, knowledge, experience and heritage within our communities and empowers residents to find creative solutions to the local issues that mattered most to them

-        Rotherham Council will:

•       Place communities at the heart of everything we do

•       Always ask and listen to ensure we are addressing the things that matter to residents

•       Be innovative in how we involve residents so that it maximises their skills and knowledge

•       Problem solve collaboratively with communities

•       ‘work with’ communities and not ‘doing to’ them

•       Identify and support the motivation to act within communities

•       Nurture relationships within neighbourhoods

•       Build the capacity and resilience of the community and local community organisations

 

Learning and Development Officer

-        Level 1 – General Awareness

-        Leave 2 – Enhanced

-        Level 3 – Practitioner

-        Level 4 – Place partners

 

Communication and Engagement

-        Monthly Ward e-bulletins – Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council – Sign up to receive News from your Neighbourhood email bulletins (govdelivery.com)

-        Social media and website – Your neighbourhood – Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council

-        Traditional media – newsletters, flyers and press releases

-        Consultation and engagement – providing opportunities for residents and community organisations to have their say

 

Opportunities for the Health and Wellbeing Board

-        Ward priorities/plans were helping to deliver the 4 Aims and Strategic Priorities – embed into Service delivery

-        Board membership/organisations information future Ward priorities – provide data, local intelligence, inequalities etc.

-        Place-based working – strengthen partnership working within neighbourhoods; focus on early intervention and prevention

-        Strengths-based working – helping communities to help themselves; joint training and development

 

Discussion ensued with the following issues raised/clarified:-

 

-        The refreshed Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) included the new Ward profiles with updated data in the Ward setting

-        The Ward plans had to be based on consultation.  Each Ward had a small pot of funding for work to be carried out

-        The Health and Wellbeing Strategy would be refreshed over the new year and provide the opportunity to engage with the public and prevent duplication

-        Preparatory work would take place in advance of the election to ensure the new Councillors had a head start

 

Martin was thanked for his presentation.

 

Resolved:-  That the presentation be noted particularly the areas of linking Ward priorities into Service delivery and helping inform future priorities.