Unlock resources for a Community Wellbeing and Prevention Fund
Utilise funds within public sector procurement as a result of the Social Value Act 2012, boosted by a match-funding incentive to secure vital resources for a prevention and early intervention approach, including sport and physical activity.
- The Social Value Act 2012 has huge untapped potential to generate positive social impact as well as achieving good value for money in public spending. For example, annual NHS procurement is currently around £4bn per year.
- An incentive-based Community Wellbeing and Prevention Fund will draw upon monies raised through public sector procurement to fund preventative, diversionary activities that protect acute services
- The Fund will represent an efficient model of private-public partnership that incentivises rather than legislates for Social Value Act funds generated from procurement contractors to be channelled into schemes that also protect the public purse down the line
- A £150m commitment from government to create a 50% draw-down incentive will result in a £450m programme of preventative wellbeing activity across the UK
- Preventative wellbeing activities will remain relevant to contracting partners (e.g NHS contractors can invest in eligible community health and wellbeing activity and benefit from the match incentive)
Invest in Neighbourhood Active Wellbeing Hubs
Ensure that active leisure opportunities are available to all sections of the community by making smaller capital facility investments at a neighbourhood level, managed by those trusted in that community.
- Capital investment that sees activity management entrusted to locally known and trusted people will reduce barriers and get more of that community active
- Smaller capital investments focussed more upon the sport and physical activity offer rather than the facility specification are more cost effective and more attractive to sections of communities more likely to be inactive
- Capital investments that focus on refurbishment and repurposing bring community spaces back to life, increase pride in localities and foster community cooperation and cohesion
- Investing in the expertise that makes a capital project locally tailored and focussed on community needs builds local capacity and social capital. It makes skilled people rather than facility maintenance the ongoing output of that investment.
- Commit to a network of 50 Neighbourhood Active Wellbeing Hubs in low-income areas that bring together sport and physical activity, early help services, multi-use community facilities and community wellbeing services
Create a Centre of Expertise for Healthy Active Neighbourhoods
Invest in a cross-policy approach to impact measurement that further builds and formalises the evidence base for the role of LTOs and sport in improving the lives and outcomes for young people in left-behind neighbourhoods.
- Create a coalition of partners with expertise/track record in improving the lives of those living in (low-income) underserved neighbourhoods through health and wellbeing outcomes
- The coalition to become a hub for evidence and what works and be an independent evaluator/advisor of progress towards 1.4m more active lower-income adults and 1m more active children targets contained within Get Active
- Act as expert advisory group to Get Active taskforce
- Function as innovation incubator for cross-policy impact through sport and physical activity, blending practice, innovation, academic research and insight
- Converts research and insight to practical recommendations that lead to local change
- Seed fund the approach, bringing together community leaders, young people, academics, practitioners and experts by experience
Engage and involve trusted community leaders in creating healthy, active neighbourhoods through sport and physical activity
Their lived experience and their role in promoting the voices of young people in their neighbourhoods is key to understanding what is needed, what works and then making it happen
- Create a statutory duty to consult and engage trusted community leaders in policy implementation at a local level
- Incentivise local and devolved authorities to delegate local decision-making and budgeting
- Use existing and developing channels to ensure trusted voices represent communities in developing the sport and physical activity offer that works for them
- Foster better community relations as well as cost-effective innovation that is community led
- Channel the voices and expertise of community leaders, and the young people they work with, into informing how to make positive change in communities
Commission Locally Trusted Organisations in a way that strengthens them, supports their financial sustainability and provides sustained sport and physical activity
- Increase capacity in local leadership in low-income, underserved communities
- Locally Trusted Organisations make national policy work locally, support that asset intentionally and in a coordinated way that makes sense for communities
- Support Locally Trusted Organisations to achieve multiple social outcomes year-after-year and with child-after-child, support them to do what they are expert in
- Work with organisations that know how to effectively commission them so that barriers to commissioning and procurement processes are removed
