Community Development Conference Report

The Sure Start team in Weston, Southampton, has seen a dramatic drop in the number of low birth weight babies, from 10% in 1998-1999 to under 1% in 2001/2. 'We were surprised at the figures, but very pleased,' project manager Catherine White told delegates at the 15th annual Health for All Network UK conference. 'We will keep recording the information to see the trends, as we're not sure yet how far the Sure Start programme has contributed,' she added.

What's in no doubt, however, is that the scheme's New Deal for Lone Parents has helped 41 people into training or work - and that the number of parents involved in local community groups since joining Sure Start has nearly doubled (from 55 to 98 between 1999-2001).

White's story was one of more than 60 presentations at the Chester event, which was attended by over 200 delegates from local government, the NHS, higher education and the voluntary and community sectors at the end of last year. The aim was to share good practice in tackling health inequalities – and the message was clear: communities need to be involved at every level of planning and service delivery to ensure they get the sort of services they need. Representatives from Lambeth, Leicester, Liverpool and Rotherham described how this is being achieved, by using methods initially developed by local Health for All, healthy cities or health action zone (HAZ) initiatives. Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham HAZ, for example, piloted a model of commissioning that is being taken on board by local health and government agencies, development manager Julia Mason told delegates. It ensures voluntary and community groups are equal partners in the process, by encouraging them to discuss what services should be included in the tender specification and to identify potential providers – including what role, if any, they could play in delivery. When the contract is put out to tender, they are invited to bid as a consortium - on an equal footing with other potential providers. (See Health Development Today, Issue 11.)

Beryl Furr, chief officer at Southend District Community Health Council (CHC), stressed the importance of equipping local people with the skills they need to become involved in strategic planning – on patients' forums or local authority overview and scrutiny committees. She described her organisation's work, in partnership with primary care trusts (PCTs) and the borough council, to develop a training course which is targeted at young people, carers, people who are homeless, refugee communities and those with learning disabilities. Topics covered include: 'A stronger voice' and an 'Introduction to monitoring the quality of NHS services'. The aim, she told delegates, is to gain accreditation for the course as an NVQ in Public and Patient Involvement.

Further north, the Action for Health programme in Keighley, Bradford, is building people's confidence and skills by training them as facilitators. Jill Kibble, manager of the Keighley Healthy Living Centre, described how it has led to a range of schemes – from a Bangladeshi organic gardening project to physical activities for Asian women and an arts programme. Community development approaches to service improvement were also demonstrated. Central Liverpool and Ayrshire and Arran PCTs, for example, described work with local groups to develop disability awareness training and to ensure equal access to health services.

In line with the theme of community involvement, Val Clark of Scotswood, Newcastle, concluded by describing how, five years ago, she helped set up a support group for parents and partners of drug misusers – when no local statutory services were available. Now she has been invited to help establish a city-wide service.