What is the positive change that has emerged through new collaborations or partnerships during Covid-19 that your project is going to embed?

Developing You is a partnership approach to providing a locally driven pre-employment support programme targeting unemployed priority neighbourhood residents with mild to moderate mental health challenges. From March to July 20 an 8.7% increase in unemployed Universal Credit claimants in Gipton & Harehills demonstrates the scale of the challenge.

Introductions onto the programme are made directly by primary care and local employment and health support is assembled under one roof to better support a customer’s onward journey.

The collaboration between primary care, employment and skills, the local care partnership development team, public health and the 3rd sector recognises that wider determinants of health impact wellbeing and an inclusive city empowers citizens to access opportunities to improve and manage their wellbeing and take steps towards contributing to local communities.

Due to COVID19 this programme moved online, an added benefit being that participants will gain IT skills for use in everyday life.

What does your project aim to achieve?

The project introduces new ways of working between community partners that offers choice, control and sustained development for local people living in challenging circumstances.

As an example nearly 1 in 4 people in project site Armley have a common mental health issue.

The visibility and accessibility of the local offer empowers local people to make informed choices which support improved health and wellbeing thereby addressing health inequalities.

The Developing You programme itself aims to raise self-awareness and self-esteem, provide tools and strategies to cope better with day-to-day life, provide opportunities to practice mindful physical activity, learn employability tips and tricks and introduce participants to a local support network of expert health and employment support providers.

Through art, physical activity and access to greenspace and alongside others in a similar position participants will improve their health and wellbeing, develop peer support networks and increase understanding of how to access further support.

How will the project be delivered?

The project is delivered in 3 pilot areas with significant unemployment and health inequality challenges.

The delivery mechanism is variable allowing each local project group to establish their own delivery partners chosen from the local  community. This adds local expertise, familiarity and visibility for participants and in-depth understanding of the specific challenges and barriers relating to demographic.

Each project includes a self-selecting group taking membership from primary care, employment and skills, the department of work and pensions, the local care partnership development team, public health and the 3rd sector.

Impact will be measured through:

·         the use of a validated health and wellbeing scale (WEMWBS)

·         the development of individual case studies and success stories

·         evidence of successful co-facilitation of a customer’s journey towards health and productivity

·         evidence of developing relationships and understanding between community partners

·         positive changes to local health inequality and unemployment data

·         return on investment through increased community cohesion

How is your project going to share learning?

An in-project process and intervention evaluation considering dose, fidelity and reach will be conducted after every iteration of each project within the Developing You programme.

Participant and stakeholder feedback and consultation with Patient Participation Groups will ensure continuous improvement within and across project sites.

An independent academic evaluation is planned to bring rigour, integrity and credibility to the existing delivery model and learning could be shared through virtual workshops and webinars and by attendance at influential local and national forums.

Data derived from the above-described measures will be used to evidence success.

In order to create the right environment for this programme to flourish the following insight can be provided:

how to capacity-build within the 3rd sector using the Asset-Based Community Development model
how to create a systems leaderships model within a city to facilitate powerful, lasting and meaningful connections between key individuals and organisations