Integrated Neighbourhood Working update

Earlier this year, we kick started our Integrated Neighbourhood Working programme in Arnold, Cotgrave, Eastwood and Hucknall.

Successful Integrated Neighbourhood Working (INW) happens when local councils, health and social care, community groups and voluntary sector organisations work together with communities to find ways to improve the health and wellbeing of local people.

We have now held events in three of four Integrated Neighbourhood areas – Arnold, Cotgrave and Eastwood. Hucknall is building on work already started and a history of close partnership working in the town.

All four neighbourhoods have identified key stakeholders and Local Design Team are currently being established.

With these developments key themes are emerging. For example, in Eastwood, priorities focus on children and young people, improving access to information and leisure facilities. While in Cotgrave, key areas are childhood obesity and anti-social behaviour.

It’s a great start to this work and we’ll be updating on the developments in each area early in the New Year. If you’re interested in finding out more, please email:

Seasons greetings from South Notts Place-Based Partnership

Our Clinical Lead, Dr Jill Langridge, wishes everyone working and living across South Nottinghamshire, a very Happy Christmas in her seasonal message. She also reflects on a busy year for South Notts Place-Based Partnership. You can read the full message here.

To keep up-to-date with everything happening across our partnership, take a look at our latest newsletter. You can also take a look back at some of our highlights of the year below.

Stay well this winter

With our colleagues in Nottingham City Place-Based Partnership (PBP), the South Nottinghamshire PBP has produced a winter leaflet, which will be shared across all our partner organisations.

The leaflet has helpful advice to stay well this winter and lots of information about additional local support available.

Download the leaflet here.

Health, education and social care working together in Broxtowe

Congratulations to Broxtowe Day Service, Nottingham West PCN and the University of Derby who have become a Notts County Council Celebrating Success finalist. These organisations have come together, working in partnership, to offer trainee nurse associates (TNAs) from Nottingham West PCN placements working with people with disabilities in a strengths-based way.

Following on from the success of the recent learning disabilities health and wellbeing roadshows – which supported people with disabilities to better understand what happens at NHS health check appointments; a bond was struck between the day service management team and the primary care network.

The Broxtowe team recognised they could support health colleagues on their learning journey to understand how working with people with disabilities in a strengths-based way can be so beneficial, particularly in relation to effective communication. This is when the TNA pilot was born, with Broxtowe Day service being the first to offer placements for health colleagues.

People training to become Nurse Associates were identified as the ideal candidates to take part in a pilot of a series of three-week placements. Although the pilot is still very much in progress it is easy to see that with social care holding a much higher status in the world of nursing, the shared goal of seeing “gold standard communication and relationship building being role modelled, with people with a range of complex needs, levels of understanding and comprehension” for the trainees.

Once evaluated in the new year, it is hoped that the pilot will be scaled up to run as a multi-PCN model across Nottinghamshire, with the team hoping to influence at national level in the long term.

How social prescribing helped boost Louise’s mental health

Louise had had a difficult few years, she was struggling to know what to do next after life had changed so much from what she knew or had expected and experienced, and found herself feeling very low. She wasn’t sure what to do with herself, but came across on social media, social prescribing activities advertised through the Canal and River Trust, so she registered and was referred through her GP.

Her GP referred her to Sophie, her local social prescribing link worker. Social prescribing connects people to activities, groups, and services in their community to meet the practical, social and emotional needs that can benefit their health and wellbeing.

Louise spoke to Sophie on the phone about what she was struggling with, and Sophie shared details on local activities that were available which she thought would help, one of those being wild swimming. Already a strong swimmer, wild swimming was something Louise had always wanted to try, so this seemed like the perfect choice. She wanted something to go to that was different and a new experience.

Sophie said: “Louise was referred to social prescribing as she had just come out of a long term relationship, had returned to Nottingham and wanted to look forward and not back. She had always been sporty and wanted to take on new challenges, including paddle boarding and wild swimming. I was able to refer her to the Canal and River Trust for paddleboarding and also suggested she link up with other social prescribers and patients via our Water and Wellness WhatsApp Group. I also worked with Louise on her wellbeing and confidence until she established herself in the new group”.

Sophie continued to speak to Louise to see how she was doing on a regular basis, to discuss what other activities were available which Louise did take part in, and also how she was coping generally. Sophie was a great support at this time for Louise.

“It was like talking to a friend who really understood you and just wanted to help if they could. I cannot thank Sophie and the team behind social prescribing enough, for the opportunity to take part in things, have new experiences and meet new people, all of which has given me a new lease of life, I urge anyone struggling with anything mentally to look into what’s available in your area.”

Louise now swims a couple of times a week at Colwick lake, In the summer she swims four times a week. Since starting in July, she has seen a real boost in her mental and physical health, so much so she signed up as a member with the organisation running things at the lake, Whole Health.

She explained what she liked about wild swimming:

“Wild swimming is something that I now really enjoy, an indoor pool just doesn’t appeal anymore! I love being outside and in nature anyway, I find it really re-sets me and gives me a boost. There are loads of physical health benefits too, cold water helps with injuries and other health conditions which I have, it has many anti-inflamatory benefits, when I’m in the lake I’m not in pain.

“Every time I go in the lake, I’ve experienced it in a different way, noticed different birds, trees, how the light effects the water and also different weather conditions like rain and wind, as well as taking part in full moon night swims, you feel very present in the moment. I love being there and It’s really improved my mental health. I have also made some great friends through the whole experience too.

“We have a WhatsApp community water and wellness group which is a fantastic support chat to everyone involved. We share with each other if we are having a good day, a bad day, any top tips for wild swimming, links to supportive content and we are in the process of organising other things together like walks, camping, and meals out.”

For anyone unsure if this is for them Louise said: “I would say do it, you don’t have to swim or be a strong swimmer, you can just get in the water and float, don’t put pressure on yourself to physically swim , I just floated about on my first couple of sessions. Even if you think you wouldn’t like it, you should try it. Give it a go.”

Morgan, Social Prescribing Team Leader who swims with Louise said:

“Louise is an absolute beacon of hope to the group, myself included. I would’ve never come this far in my own open water journey without Louise and other members of the group, they are absolute superstars! So courageous, so kind and so cheerful! We are very lucky to have them.”

Supporting the farming community with their mental health

Work has been taking place in Rushcliffe, led by the Rushcliffe Community Voluntary Service (CVS), to look at how best the farming community can be supported with their mental health.

The Farming Community Network (FCN) highlighted that the farming community are at higher risk of suicide and mental health challenges. There are a lot of difficulties farmers face, such as rising costs, which are taking a toll on confidence and certainty, which are contributing to some farmers struggling with their mental health.

The FCN works to raise awareness about the free and confidential practical and pastoral support FCN offers farming families and the wider agricultural industry in Nottinghamshire.

Rushcliffe CVS is working to raise more awareness of the service and connect FCN with relevant organisations in the county. With a particular request to engage GP practices to enable partners to share thoughts on how we might more effectively connect isolated, hard to reach farmers with necessary health care and other relevant support networks.

Information is also sent over to the FCN that would be relevant to their volunteers, such as free courses from Harmless for suicide and bereavement, free counselling courses and also asking the young farmers if they would join the patient participation group at their GP practices to get the farming community voice heard. Yvonne also shares information that may be useful to farmers such as about the Groundworks green doctor project, who will go and talk with farmers around their energy cost, free light bulbs and look at any other areas they may be to help them save money from the family home on the farm.

There are plans to continue to connect with the FCN to ensure farmers receive the best possible support. Farmers can get support from the FCN here – Health – Farming Community Network (fcn.org.uk)

Integrated Care Board visit to Cotgrave

On Monday 2 October, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Integrated Care Board’s Chair Kathy Mclean and Chief Officer Amanda Sullivan joined Place Based Partnership (PBP) colleagues Dave Banks, Deputy Chief Executive and Derek Hayden, Communities Manager at Rushcliffe Borough Council for a tour of Cotgrave to look at some of the fantastic improvements and community work happening in the town

Cotgrave is one of the areas the PBP is working with as part of the integrated neighbourhoods programme. Successful integrated neighbourhood working happens when local health and social care, local authorities, community groups and voluntary sector organisations work together with communities to find ways to improve the health and wellbeing of local people and there’s lots of great things to build on in Cotgrave.

Starting at the state-of-the-art Cotgrave Hub, representatives from Rushcliffe Primary Care Network, Rushcliffe Community and Voluntary Service (CVS), Nottinghamshire Healthcare and the South Notts Place-Based Partnership team joined the tour. Dave gave an overview of the new hub and talked about some of the key regeneration work that had happened in the town.

This was followed by a visit to the leisure centre, which is the next step in the Borough Council’s redevelopment strategy. Dave and Derek talked about some of the plans for the future of the centre, while at the same time retaining some of the existing features which have made it so popular.

Following that, it was a short walk across the road to the Cotgrave Community Gardens to meet Samie Mathers, who talked about the work at the gardens (which sit on land kindly provided by the local Miners Welfare) and the community kitchens.

The basis behind the project is the belief that food insecurity and education have a direct impact on health outcomes and the team want to support the people of Cotgrave to develop as a community of food growers, empowering groups and individuals to grow their own and to celebrate fresh food rather than it being a source of stress and fear.

Samie explained how the community have welcomed the gardens and how they host seasonal community events and family activities based around food, the environment and nature. She also spoke about how they work with schools to help young people understand food production and supply the Cotgrave Community Kitchen, a non-profit making organisation providing meals to the local community.

With donations from Sainsbury’s, Co-op, Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl and Marks & Spencer, the kitchen provides food parcels for the local community. Based at the Hub, it’s open two days a week from 10.30am – 12pm and stocks fruit, vegetables, bread, groceries, household goods, chilled and frozen foods, which are all available for a small donation or affordable prices. With the cost-of-living pressures, the kitchen welcomes over 140 shoppers every week.

From the community gardens, the tour headed back to the library at the Hub for presentations, firstly from Carolyn Perry (Rushcliffe CVS), who talked about the volunteer projects underway in the town. Carolyn was followed by Morgan and Sally, Rushcliffe social prescribers, who explained how they can support local people and some of the schemes that have started across Rushcliffe.

Lastly came a very hard-hitting presentation from Nicky Brindley from the J9 Domestic Abuse initiative, which is run by Job Centres and was created in memory of Janine Mundy, who was murdered by her partner in June 2003.

Nicky explained that, if you see the J9 logo, it means the building you are in has a safe place for people threatened with domestic violence and alerts victims that they can obtain information which will help them to access a safe place where they can seek information and the use of a telephone. Participants also receive a domestic abuse information pack which can be used to signpost victims to specialist organisations offering additional support. The pack has a lot of information to aid victims in understanding their rights and accessing help and support. You can find out more about J9 here.

Partnership hosts fabulous Killisick fun day for local families!

On Saturday 30 September, the South Notts Place-Based Partnership, Gedling Borough Council, Positively Empowered Kids and other local partners hosted a fun day in Killisick for local families.

It was a fabulous day, with something for everyone, adults and children alike, with a smoothie bike, hand massages, cake stalls, jewellery, Inflatable slide, skateboarding, face painting, arts and crafts, blood pressure checks, local GPs (pictured below) providing health advice and much more!

Our Clinical Lead Gill and Programme Director Helen particularly enjoyed potting plants – they reported that it was ‘very therapeutic’.

Killisick, in Geding, is one of the five pilot areas in Nottinghamshire and Nottingham to be funded through the NHSEI Prevention Programme to promote happy and healthy communities in areas where the greatest health inequalities exist.

The project has taken a community engagement approach to ensure purposeful and sustained approaches to tackle health inequalities through co-production

From the beginning we have taken a collaborative approach to community engagement involving partners from a range of organisations with an active interest in the Killisick area. Partners include representatives from Gedling Borough Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Active Notts, Newark and Sherwood CVS and other local organisations.

Residents and stakeholders have been working with partners over the last 12 months to shape long term sustainable solutions which will have a positive impact on residents’ future health and wellbeing. If you would like to share your experiences then please contact community@gedling.gov.uk

Gedling residents invited to health and wellbeing event

Two local Primary Care Networks (PCN) in Gedling (Arrow and Synergy) are hosting their first health and wellbeing event for local patients and residents.

A PCN is a group of GP practices working together with other local organisations, such as community, mental health, social care, pharmacy, hospital and voluntary services and alongside local communities, to provide integrated services to the local population.

The event is being held from 11am to 2pm at Westdale Lane Community Centre in Mapperley, with representatives from local health and care and voluntary organisations sharing information about their services and interactive sessions focused on wellbeing. On top of information from local services, attendees can also expect:

Cost of living advice and support
Advice from local health and care professionals
Health checks
Free healthy food and freebies
Sports and activity opportunities
Lots of things for the kids to take part in too!

Arrow and Synergy PCNs have worked in partnership with Gedling Borough Council, local NHS, South Notts Place-Based Partnership and local voluntary and community organisations to organise the event.

Arrow PCN Clinical Director Dr Umar Ahmed saying: “As two Primary Care Networks, we recognised, that if we came together along with other key local organisations, that we had an opportunity to put on an event that is open to our whole community to help tackle some of the issues that impact on people’s wellbeing. We hope that by bringing so many organisations and experts together, we can support local people to make their health a priority.

“I hope that our patients and local people can find the time to join us on Saturday 14 October, to find out more about the support that is available and that by coming along to this event, you can access the help and advice you need to improve your health and wellbeing.”