Year 1 Study Visit Brochure 2016

People, neighbourhoods, and the things that matter most

Neighbourhoods that Work supports communities to develop their ideas for improving lives, works with existing services to work better together with people who need help, and supports people into training, volunteering and paid work.

NTW is a 3-5 year programme of work, funded by the Big Lottery Fund. Great Yarmouth Borough Council leads the partnership, working alongside 7 other organisations to deliver the collective outcomes: Great Yarmouth College, DIAL, GYROS, Future Projects, Voluntary Norfolk, Business in the Community and Great Yarmouth and Waveney Mind.

Welcome to Neighbourhoods that Work (NTW) Study Visit 2016. NTW started in October 2015 and, one year on, our vision remains simple: we work with local residents to build stronger communities.

On the ground, NTW helps people living in Great Yarmouth to identify their strengths, develop skills, and work through complex issues. It takes a joined-up approach to community work, and puts people at the centre of its philosophy. Integration is key to Neighbourhoods that Work, ensuring that local residents are linked to the right people, the right support and the right expertise, at the right time.

Neighbourhoods That Work isn't a completely new way of working in Great Yarmouth. It builds upon over 15 years of Community Development work in the borough. Great Yarmouth Borough Council has a proud history of collaborative and progressive work with communities, VCS organisations, public sector bodies and socially focused businesses. We are proud to be continually pushing the boundaries through NTW, ensuring local initiatives meet broader strategic priorities.

The Study Visit 2016 is your opportunity to meet the teams, discover insights into the practice, hear how the local connects to the global, and to visit grassroots development projects in action!

This year it's all about the flow - understanding the nuances, the connectivity, the variety and the differences that make the difference.

We are a local programme, but we are acutely aware of the bigger picture. In recent months we have consciously been considering the impact of NTW delivery in line with global ambitions, most notably the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In our Practice Development during 2017 we will be reflecting on how NTW relates to this international agenda. To introduce this to you, we are excited to welcome our Keynote, Anastasia Crickley, to the study visit.

As we mark the end of year one, we are proud to share the achievements and also challenges we have experienced- both of which we see as crucial learning to us all in achieving sustainable progress.

Thanks for coming to this study visit and we hope you enjoy your day.

Robert Read Director of Housing and Neighbourhoods, Great Yarmouth Borough Council

Acting locally, thinking globally

NTW Study Visit 2016 is excited to welcome Anastasia Crickley who will be providing a keynote on 'Connecting the UN global Sustainable Development Goals to the grass roots.'

Anastasia is Chairperson of the United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Vice President of International Association of Community Development, Head of the Department of Applied Social Studies at National University of Ireland, Chairperson of the Irish Community Workers Cooperative and a founder of the European Network Against Racism.

Snap shot of year one

• 94 residents reporting new friendships
• 118 residents joining new groups or networks
• 41 resident self-help community groups supported to develop
• 76 people supported to overcome at least one personal challenge
• 60 people with complex needs have attended taster days, work placements or volunteering activity - all have reported improved confidence as a result
• 32 people have overcome issues preventing them from getting and keeping a job
• 470 residents taking part in at least one community event
• NTW staff have engaged with 1014 people in year one, 657 of whom have received more in-depth support from the project
• 74 volunteers feeling more active in their community
• 187 people who have completed Events organised or supported at least one training session
• 25 people have maintained involvement in community activity or employment for the first time
• 66 events organised or supported
• 97 businesses engaged with the programme
• 186 people reporting improved skills after completing at least one training session
• 20 local businesses signed up to our Responsible Business Network

"Let me introduce you!"

We favour a personal approach. Rather than operating through service to service referral mechanisms, we utilise the concept of 'introductions' from person to person. This approach helps to make sure residents are fully involved in any support processes, minimising repetition of backstories.

Neighbourhood teams

Much of NTW is delivered through localised 'patch' teams across the urban parts of the borough. The teams collectively have a broad role- to help individuals become more resilient and communities become stronger

Each team features a mixture of NTW practitioners, ensuring a wide range of skills and expertise.

Neighbourhood Managers are core GYBC staff and they coordinate the patch teams. They make sure that the priorities of residents are reflected in the team's collective delivery plans, whilst developing connections with local provision through working strategically with statutory service providers and other partners.

We get to know local people, help residents to develop their interests, support community events to happen, provide hands on help to local individuals and projects, signpost to and coordinate services, provide information around training and support people in to employment.

Working on the patch...

Life Connectors: Supporting people that need a bit more help to enable them to overcome complex issues by providing coaching, practical advice and techniques on coping and resolving their issues.

Community Connectors: Identifying and building relationships with local people by proactively engaging in natural locations (e.g. school gates, corner shop, parks). They find out what matters to people and connect them to other local residents, activities and support services, if needed.

Community Development Workers: Supporting people to identify their strengths and develop skills to benefit their neighbourhood by supporting the set up of community groups, projects or events.

Skills Connectors: working with people to identify skills, talents and ambitions, and matching these with opportunities that will improve their work readiness and employment chances eg. soft skills workshops, volunteering, work placements, training courses.

The wider team includes the following people

Transformation Manager: Supporting communities and businesses to work together, creating work placement opportunities for long term unemployed residents and recruiting Businesses to pool their skills within neighbourhood teams and community projects.

Volunteer Coordinator: Recruiting, supporting and training volunteers across the project, matching interests with skills and developing opportunities.

Multi-Disciplinary Workers: providing dedicated specialist advice and guidance on debt, benefits, housing and wider support needs.

Training Connector: developing tailored and innovative training and learning opportunities for people, by matching the interests of individuals with the development of skills highlighted by local employers as entry-level requirements into local jobs.

Service Connectors: a central contact point for making sure that local people with complicated and complex life challenges are able to access the right services at the right time.

Impact and change

Measuring our impact is essential in demonstrating the benefits of an integrated place based Community Development approach.

By using evidence based research and practical examples from communities, we aim to progress multi-agency agendas, influence policies and transform frontline delivery across the social-sector.

Our Evaluation partner is the University of East Anglia and their work is supported by a small team of Great Yarmouth residents employed as Community Researchers.

Stronger communities infrastructure

NTW focusses across urban Great Yarmouth, covering a population of approximately 53,000 people. The programme is delivered through the borough's Stronger Communities Infrastructure. Central to this are Neighbourhood Management programmes, governed by Neighbourhood boards. These provide localised, ward-level, coordination allowing for genuine relationship development, a focus on street level priorities, improvements to local services, and the development of a strong community network.

Communities drive NTW. There are 3 Neighbourhood Boards, and each one has 50% resident membership.

Community resilience - Transforming services - Employment, skills and economic growth

The resilience of communities, the quality of services, and the growth potential of the local economy are all linked.

Increasing capacity in communities enables them to become more resilient in the face of changing social, economic and environmental conditions.

Communities are connected to the benefits of economic growth, by increasing community resilience, by improving responsiveness of voluntary sector support services, and by increasing participation of communities in driving forward sustainable economic development.

NTW overarching aims:

• residents across the borough will be actively leading and contributing to activities which strengthen the social fabric of their neighbourhoods
• community and voluntary sector organisations will be stronger, more diverse and will be effectively contributing to the boroughs economy
• there will be a reduced demand on public services as community capacity is built, resilience increased and early intervention becomes more effective and coordinated
• more people will be able to identify their strengths to improve their skills, enabling them to access training, voluntary work placements and paid employment, particularly in the parts of the borough facing the most challenges