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Lewisham and Greenwich selected as Neighbourhood Health Trailblazer Sites
Lewisham Health and Care Partnership and the Healthier Greenwich Partnership have been selected as Trailblazer sites and will join the first wave of testing a new approach to funding neighbourhood health.
Using a pioneering new finance model, Trailblazer is challenging health and social care systems and partnerships to innovate more joined up care solutions that focus on prevention, keep people well in their communities, and offer care close to home.
Closely aligned to the ambitions set out in the national 10-Year Health Plan for the NHS, Trailblazer aims to fund environments and partnerships that drive local neighbourhood-based work and initiatives.
Locally in Greenwich and Lewisham, the focus will be on developing joined-up models of care covering long term conditions, frailty and end of life care, as well as cancer, that build on the work of existing Integrated Neighbourhood Teams. This work will be run within programmes already underway, aiming to test and learn what can happen locally, and where possible, to share learning nationally of what works across a larger scale.
The programme will use a social investment partnership model, bringing together local government, health and care partners, community organisations and social investors to explore new ways of funding preventative approaches. The model provides investment to support new approaches that aim to improve outcomes for residents and reduce future demand on public services, with the learning helping to demonstrate what could be scaled up elsewhere.
The next stage is a six-month development period during which the focus will be on drafting and finalising robust business cases to support the approach. At the end of this period we will find out if this has been successful and the investment can be secured to ensure continued outcomes that matter to our residents, with the aim of shifting more care and support closer to where people live.
Cllr Samantha Gardiner, Cabinet Member for Health, Wellbeing and Adult Social Care in Lewisham, said: "I’m delighted that Lewisham has been chosen as a Neighbourhood Health Trailblazer site.
“At its heart, this is about making life better for Lewisham residents - helping them to get the right support earlier, closer to home and in ways that work for them and their families.
“We know that good health is about much more than medical care alone, which is why I’m especially proud that this programme builds on the incredible work of our voluntary, community and faith organisations. Every day, they deliver trusted, grassroots support that helps people stay physically and mentally well within their communities.
“By bringing together our health services, voluntary sector groups and the council, we have a real opportunity to tackle inequalities, strengthen prevention and help more people live healthier and happier lives."
Cllr Mariam Lolavar, Cabinet Member for Health, Adult Social Care and Communities at the Royal Borough of Greenwich said: “I am delighted that Greenwich has been selected as a Trailblazer site, giving us a fantastic opportunity to work with partners and communities to transform the way we support residents to live healthier lives.
“If we are successful following this stage of the programme, this investment will help us put prevention at the heart of our approach, tackling health inequalities and making sure people can access the right support at the right time, as close to home as possible.
“Greenwich already has a wealth of expertise and strong partnerships across our health, care and voluntary, community and faith sectors. This programme will allow us to build on that strength, test new approaches and put residents at the centre of how we design services for the future.
“We’re excited to get started and to demonstrate what can be achieved when local government, health services, communities and social investors work together.”
Ceri Jacob, Lewisham Place Executive Lead, said: "Trailblazer is a groundbreaking approach to funding innovation and best practice across neighbourhood health, which is a national priority for the NHS and a vital priority for the people of Lewisham.
“The future of health and social care depends on creating more effective and engaging approaches to prevention and lifelong care, supporting people’s physical, mental, and social wellbeing, and delivering more care within communities rather than emergency settings. Being part of this pioneering programme will help us accelerate progress in these areas in a smarter, faster and more targeted way.”
“I’ve no doubt that the competition was fierce as all NHS systems are focused on this priority and our inclusion reflects the groundwork and thinking we have done to create a solid foundation for change in Lewisham and our neighbouring borough and partner, Greenwich. We couldn’t be happier to have been selected and to be working on this together.”
Core partners across Greenwich and Lewisham:
- South East London ICB
- Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust (LGT)
- Primary Care
- London Borough of Lewisham
- Royal Borough of Greenwich
- Lewisham Local
- Greenwich Action for Voluntary Service (GAVS)
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
- Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust
- Community Hospice for Greenwich and Bexley
- South East London Cancer Alliance
See full Department of Health and Social Care announcement here.