Healthy Croydon Briefing October 2007

Croydon’s joint health improvement plan
Work is underway to develop a new joint health improvement plan for Croydon. The Healthy Croydon Partnership Executive Group is overseeing the process. We are aiming for the final draft plan to be endorsed by the Council Cabinet and PCT Board in December 2007. A wide range of stakeholders were invited to contribute to the development of the plan at an event at the Fairfield Halls on 28 September 2007. The proposals for the plan will be an agenda item at the Healthy Croydon meeting on 31 October 2007.

We want our plan to be an accessible public document, setting out clearly and in plain English, our vision for a Healthy Croydon and how we intend to work together to deliver that vision for the people of Croydon. The plan will focus on key health improvement outcomes in six or seven short themed chapters. We also want to include examples of things we are already doing to improve people’s health and well-being in Croydon.

For more information about the health improvement plan contact Ruth Finlay, Project Manager
Tel: 020 8760 5773
Email: ruth.finlay@croydon.gov.uk

IDeA Healthy Communities Peer Review - next steps
A copy of the final report and management action plan has been distributed to all members of the Partnership. Work is already underway in a number of areas highlighted by the Review including a ‘fitness for purpose’ review of Partnership Groups and the development of the joint health improvement plan. The Management Action Plan arising from the review is being overseen by the Council Corporate Management Team with input on the partnership issues from the Healthy Croydon Partnership Executive Group.

For more information about the Healthy Communities Peer Review contact Steve Morton, Healthy Croydon Partnership Manager
Tel: 020 8760 5773
Email: steve.morton@croydon.gov.uk

Review of partnerships in health and social care
Croydon has a broad range of health and care partnership arrangements. These were last reviewed in 2002-03. It is important to ensure that our partnership arrangements are robust and remain ‘fit for purpose’.

A new review began in July 2007 with collection of key documents from fourteen health and care partnership groups. Initial findings were discussed by the HCP Executive Group on 21 September 2007. Follow up interviews with Chairs and lead officers and members of the partnership groups are underway. A final report with recommendations will go to the HCP Executive Group meeting on 6 December 2007. The report will be made available to all partnership groups by the end of December 2007. It will identify best practice and contain an improvement checklist for Partnership Groups which will enable them to identify, prioritise and address areas for improvement.

For more information about the Healthy Communities Peer Review contact Rachel Nicholson, Health Inequalities Policy Officer
Tel: 020 8760 5773
Email: rachel.nicholson@croydon.gov.uk

Croydon’s Think Tanks
Croydon’s Think Tank projects are still going strong! These projects were initiated by Healthy Croydon over 10 years ago to tackle health problems affecting the most deprived areas of Croydon. They aimed to address a wide range of underlying determinants of health such as poor housing, education or income and parenting skills. They are funded by Croydon PCT and Croydon Council. Projects funded through the Think Tanks include the Welfare Benefits Project, Croydon Drop In, the Talk Bus, the SAFE project and the Business Start Up scheme.

A recent evaluation aimed to assess whether Think Tank projects are still delivering effective interventions to improve health and reduce health inequalities in deprived areas of Croydon. It also aimed to establish whether the projects were delivering against current health priorities for the borough in a cost effective way. The conclusion is that the majority of projects are delivering good quality interventions which improve health and contribute to reducing health inequalities. They provide value for money in terms of their impact on individuals’ health and add value in other areas, including, for example, increased family income, access to education and training, and helping vulnerable people stay in their own homes.

For more information about the Think Tank projects contact Rachel Nicholson, Health Inequalities Policy Officer
Tel: 020 8760 5773
Email: rachel.nicholson@croydon.gov.uk

Talk2Croydon
Talk2Croydon - a website aimed at helping people to get involved in decisions that affect them and their communities and supporting organisations with community involvement has been publicly launched. It gives residents a platform to discuss public services, regardless of whether they are run by Croydon NHS, the Council, the police or whoever. As well as being able to raise issues that matter to them, people will be able to find out what changes as a result.To find out more log on to www.talk2croydon.co.uk

Health and Care Forum
Croydon’s Health and Care Forum met on 18 September 2007. The main topics for discussion were the draft Strategy for Mental Health & Social Care in Older Age and also Refugee Health and Care in preparation for the Healthy Croydon Partnership meeting on 31 October 2007. The next meeting will be on 11 December 2007.

For more information about the Health and Care Forum contact Cath Collins, Community Involvement Worker
Tel: 020 8683 7010
Email: cath.collins@cvalive.org.uk

Croydon Council’s Corporate Assessment
The Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) framework was first introduced for single tier and county councils in 2002 to rate councils on how well they were delivering services to their local communities. Since then it has evolved and in 2005 it was made harder becoming a more stringent assessment with greater emphasis on outcomes for local people and value for money. Under the CPA councils are rated annually by combining scores for individual services to achieve an overall score. Croydon’s current overall CPA score, published in February 2007, is 3 stars, performing well.

One of the key components of the CPA framework is the corporate assessment – a special periodic inspection – that results in a separate score and detailed inspection report. You can view Croydon’s most recent corporate assessment – which took place in 2004/05 – at www.audit-commission.gov.uk/cpa/authority.asp

The Council’s next corporate assessment is scheduled to start on 28 January 2008 for two weeks. It will involve having a team of about 20 inspectors on-site who will interview Council Members, staff, partners, stakeholders and residents, as well as visiting council facilities. Children’s services are also going to be inspected at the same time, in a separate inspection known as the Joint Area Review. Part of the assessment will look at how the Council has worked with its partners to improve health and well-being in the borough.

For more information about CPA contact Linda Oram
Tel: 020 8726 6000 ext. 47016
Email: linda.oram@croydon.gov.uk

PCT Commissioning Strategy Plan
The PCT’s five year Commissioning Strategy Plan was submitted to NHS London on 4 October and will be taken to the PCT’s October Board meeting. Between now and the end of December the PCT will be developing a three year detailed operating plan. The five strategic goals set out in the Commissioning Strategy Plan are:

By 2012, we will improve health and reduce inequalities by focusing on the two areas of greatest potential health gain: children & young people and smoking.

By 2012 we will improve the quality of life for people with long term conditions, through designing a whole system model with generic pathways with increased self care, reduced urgent care and increased provision of planned responses.

By 2012 we will have models of care and deliver services designed around the needs and preferences of local people, which provide services closer to home where possible and centralised where necessary based on quality and expertise.

By 2012 we will improve the quality and infrastructure of maternity services and ensure that all women have choice about the maternity care they receive, together with improved access to services and continuity of midwifery care and support.

By 2012 we will improve services and promote independence for people with learning disabilities through the delivery of the social care change programme which will reprovide services for clients currently in community homes.

For more information on the Commissioning Strategy Plan, contact Fouzia Basit, Assistant Director: Strategic Planning and Performance Improvement
Tel: 020 8274 6205
Email fouzia.basit@croydonpct.nhs.uk


Consultations
At the PCT Board meeting on 28 August 2007 the Board agreed not to take forward the Primary Care Strategy proposals in their current form. The PCT consulted widely on the proposals over three months from March to May 2007. The consultation generated a high level of interest and the PCT received 189 formal responses. A focus group was held to confirm that the findings were accurately represented. Overall, concerns raised by local people indicated a need to undertake further development work, which will also take into consideration the Commissioning Strategy Plan and Healthcare for London proposals. Revised proposals will be developed by March 2008.

Events
SLaM are organising a half day event on Suicide Prevention, 10 December 9.15 – 1.30 at the Bethlem Royal Hospital. For more information contact Kristy Papas on 020 3228 3745 kristy.papas@slam.nhs.uk

The Girls Matter Conference is due to take place at Croydon Chamber Town Hall Croydon on 27 November 2007. It is the first of its kind to be held in Croydon and will focus on five key areas:
Raising Aspirations
Teenage Pregnancy & Sexual Health
Girls & Gangs
NEET – Not in Education, Employment or Training
Self Esteem & Positive Body Images

For more information visit www.girlsmattercroydon.com

Well London – what does it mean for Croydon?

Well London is a new Big Lottery funded programme which aims to improve health and well-being across London. The Well London Alliance, a group of organisations brought together by the London Health Commission, has been awarded £9,460,000 by the Big Lottery. Well London will work with the most disadvantaged communities in London, at a very local level, using a community development approach. The programme will tackle three of the most important determinants of health inequalities: poor diet, lack of physical activity and poor mental well-being. Well London will also research and assess what interventions work, to help guide future policy and develop practice.

In Croydon part of Broad Green around Handcroft Road and Parson’s Mead has been chosen as one of 20 areas for delivery of Well London. The area has a population of about 1600 people, and has been selected because of its high levels of deprivation. It will benefit from the delivery of coordinated community-led projects to improve health. Well London aims to build on and complement existing provision and initiatives in Broad Green, while enabling the development of new activities in partnership with local people. A number of projects will be delivered over 3 years by different partners of the Well London Alliance. Central London YMCA are the lead for young people and children, Groundwork for physical activity and the environment, London Sustainability Exchange on food access, SLaM for mental health and well-being and the Arts Council England for the use of art and culture in improving health.

The first Well London work in Broad Green will begin in October 2007 in the form of a comprehensive health needs assessment to capture local people’s own accounts of their needs and priorities. This will happen through community cafes, focus groups and interviews in the community. Before October 2007, we need to identify a local co-host organisation, to facilitate the effective design and delivery of the needs assessment. Ideally this should be a grass roots voluntary organisation with good links and networks across Broad Green and the surrounding areas.

The Healthy Croydon Partnership will facilitate the establishment of Well London in Croydon. A Local Advisory Group made up of organisations already working in the area will be set up to oversee the work. SLaM are Croydon’s lead partner in the overall Well London programme. Together we will aim to capture and disseminate learning from Well London to inform work in other parts of the borough.

If you would like to be involved in setting up Well London in Broad Green, or would like to be kept informed, please contact Rachel Nicholson, Health Inequalities Policy Officer, on 020 8760 5794 rachel.nicholson@croydon.gov.uk

For information on Well London visit the London Health Commission website www.londonshealth.gov.uk/well_london.htm

Healthy Croydon Briefing July 2007

IDeA Healthy Communities Peer Review update
Healthy Croydon has been working with the Improvement & Development Agency (IDeA), other local authorities, PCTs and a range of national organisations to inform the development of a new Peer Review process. The Healthy Communities Peer Review aims to assist local authorities and their partners develop effective approaches to improving health and well-being. The new Peer Review will be informed by a benchmark which looks at performance in four areas:

• Leadership
• Empowering communities
• Making it happen
• Improving performance

Croydon Council was asked by the IDeA to be one of the first authorities to pilot the new peer review. The review team, headed by Tony Elson, former Chief Executive of Kirklees Council, visited Croydon from the 24th to the 26th April. They met a broad range of officers and members within the Council, frontline staff, staff from partner organisations, voluntary and community sector representatives and members of the public.

A draft report was sent to the Council by the IDeA and is being considered by Council leadership and Healthy Croydon's Executive Group. The final report is expected in August 2007. Initial feedback identified a numbers of areas of particular strength including robust partnership working, a strong performance management culture and excellent community engagement. The pilot review also identified a number of areas for consideration including the need for clearer emphasis on outcomes, the need to strengthen member and officer leadership, and the need to ensure strategy and business plans across the Council reflect the health improvement agenda. There are also opportunities to build the role of Overview and Scrutiny in health improvement and to learn from the experience of the Healthy Schools programme.

A copy of the final report and management action plan will be distributed to all members of the Partnership. Work is already underway in a number of areas highlighted by the Review including a ‘fitness for purpose’ review of Partnership Groups and the development of strategic framework for health improvement. Members of the Partnership will be kept regularly updated on developments.

For more information about the Healthy Communities Peer Review contact Steve Morton, Healthy Croydon Partnership Manager
Tel: 020 8760 5773
Email: steve.morton@croydon.gov.uk

Healthy Croydon @ Croydon Summer Festival
Healthy Croydon organised a healthy living marquee at this year’s Croydon Summer Festival which took place in Lloyd Park on 14 & 15 July. Free fruit and still water were one enticement for people visiting the Healthy Croydon marquee. PCT and Council staff, alongside local voluntary organisations, spent two days promoting and encouraging healthy living at the Festival. There was a particular emphasis on small lifestyle changes that people can take to reduce the risk of diabetes, stroke and coronary heart disease. We also aimed to show people how healthy living can be fun!

There were a variety of displays in the marquee with service information and fun activities covering a range of topics including Mental Health and Well Being, Physical Activity, Smoking Cessation, Breast and Cervical Screening. In addition, local Afro-Caribbean and Asian Cookery clubs were able to give delicious healthy eating tips and recipes.

Nurses were available to carry out blood pressure and waist measurement checks, which many visitors took advantage of. These simple tests were particularly effective as people were able to see how a reduction of only a few centimetres on their waist measurement would move them from a ‘high risk’ to a ‘low risk’ group of getting diabetes. Those that had high blood pressure were advised to visit their GP. The health checks were complemented by advice from local Diabetes UK representatives.

Children had the opportunity to draw ‘a picture of health’ which uncovered plenty of budding young artists and vivid imaginations. The pictures also showed that young people do already have good knowledge about what they can do to live healthily. Young people also enjoyed looking at replica food and were surprised by the amount of salt, sugar and fat hidden in everyday foods.

The marquee welcomed hundreds of visitors from a wide range of ethnicities and ages, all benefiting from all the information and advice on offer. The Mayor, several local councillors, MPs and the new council Chief Executive all visited the marquee during the festival. Many visitors completed evaluation forms saying they had taken away useful information and positive messages about how they might be able to lead healthier lives.

Croydon Health Profile 2007
Croydon’s Health Profile has recently been updated. The 2007 Croydon Health Profile can be found at http://www.communityhealthprofiles.info/

Headlines from the Profile include:

• On average, men in Croydon live longer than in England as a whole, although for women life expectancy is similar to the England average.
• Death rates from major causes, such as cancer and heart disease and stroke are similar to the England average.
• There is a high rate of reported violent crime compared to England as a whole although the rate is lower than the London average.
• Croydon is estimated to have a higher percentage of adults who eat healthily, and a lower proportion of obese adults compared to the England average. Binge drinking amongst Croydon residents is estimated to be below the average for England.
• The percentage of the population with recorded diabetes is higher than average, which is consistent with Croydon's ethnic mix.
• Teenage pregnancy rates are high in Croydon compared to the England average.
• Areas in the north and east of Croydon tend to have higher levels of deprivation than those in the south.
• Men in the least deprived areas live over 6 years longer than those in the most deprived areas, and women almost 5 years longer on average.
• There is a low proportion of people in routine and manual occupations in Croydon compared to England as a whole.
• 1 in 5 of the White British population in Croydon is in these occupations compared to over 1 in 4 in England.

Electronic records - Croydon first again!
After being the first area in the country to go-live with the electronic prescriptions service, Croydon PCT has once again taken the lead. If a patient moves to a new area, their electronic record can now be transferred to their new GP through the NHS Care Records Service computer network. Previously this could only happen between GPs using the same IT systems. GPs in Croydon took part in a successful trial to send records between different computer systems. Now trusts around England will follow suit.

For more information about the Electronic Records trial contact John Toole, Head of Information Management and Technology
Tel: 020 8274 6097
Email: john.toole@croydonpct.nhs.uk

Homes for the Future (New4Old) Programme
Councillor Margaret Mead, Cabinet Member for Health & Adult Social Care will be placing the last piece of concrete at the top of the Heavers Farm building on 20 September. Heavers Farm is one of 4 sites being redeveloped as part of the Homes for the Future Programme (formerly known as the New4Old programme).
Homes for the Future is the council's programme to modernise residential and day care services for older people in Croydon. It has the backing of Central Government and Private Finance Initiative (PFI) Funding. Credit approval has been secured for £38 million.
More information about Homes for the Future can be found on the council website or from Adriana Costantino, Homes for the Future Project Officer
Tel: 020 8726 6500
Email: adriana.costantino@croydon.gov.uk

Beacon Awards – Round 9
Croydon is seeking its 7th Beacon award following this year’s double award for Increasing Voluntary Sector Delivery and Delivering Cleaner Air. A small project team has worked with a wide range of individuals and organisations to compile evidence to support an application under the Local Strategic Partnerships and Local Area Agreements theme. Short-listing of applications will take place in October. Panel assessment visits will then be held in November and December 2007, which will give an opportunity to present additional material and more examples of good practice from Croydon. Panel presentations will take place in January 2008 and short-listed authorities will hear the final decision next March.

For more information about the Beacon scheme and Croydon’s application contact Amanda Guest-Collins, Policy Officer
Tel: 020 8604 7010
Email: amanda.guest-collins@croydon.gov.uk

Rogers Review
Peter Rogers’ report on the ‘National enforcement priorities for local authority regulatory services’ was published on the 21st March this year alongside the Budget. Its recommendations were accepted in full by the Government. The Review sets out 5 National Enforcement Priorities (and one short term Priority) and criteria for selecting local priorities. The National Enforcement Priorities are:

• Air quality, including regulation of pollution from factories and homes (includes air quality plans)
• Alcohol, entertainment and late night refreshment licensing and its enforcement
• Hygiene of businesses selling, distributing and manufacturing food and the safety and fitness of food in the premises
• Improving health in the workplace
• Fair trading (trade description, trade marking, mis-description, doorstep selling)
  Plus,
• Animal and public health, animal movements and identification – a time limited priority due to a review of delivery

Croydon council will be working with partners to identify local enforcement priorities. The criteria for selecting local priorities are that an issue:
Causes significant harm within a local authority area,
Generates high levels of local concern,
Is such that local authorities can make a difference to outcomes in their locality and
Can be dealt with by each local authority independently of what other local authorities do

For more information about the implications of the Rogers Review for Croydon contact Mike Pilgrim, Divisional Director Public Protection
Tel: 020 8686 4433 x 65433
Email: mike.pilgrim@croydon.gov.uk

Consultations
A consultation on Croydon’s Draft Joint Strategy for Mental Health and Social Care in Older Age 2007 – 2010 was launched on 9 July 2007. The Draft Joint Strategy sets out the strategic direction and development of mental health services for older people, based on a comprehensive needs analysis, over the next 3 years. The strategy aims to ensure older people with mental health conditions are supported to live actively and independently for as long as possible and to ensure fair access to services tailored to individual needs. The consultation ends on 1 October 2007.

For copies of the consultation document contact Sue Cousins at Croydon PCT
Tel: 020 8274 6237
Email: sue.cousins@croydonpct.nhs.uk

If you have any queries or would like to discuss the strategy please contact Claire Godfrey Assistant Director Older People, Physical Disabilities and Sensory Impairment Partnership Commissioning on 020 8274 6251 claire.godfrey@croydonpct.nhs.uk

What is the Healthy Croydon Partnership?

The Healthy Croydon Partnership was set up in 1999 to provide strategic leadership for health and social care services in Croydon. Healthy Croydon is now one of the family of partnerships that comprise the Croydon Strategic Partnership.

Healthy Croydon aims to protect and improve the health, safety and well being of local residents, visitors and people who work in Croydon. Its vision is that people in Croydon:

• are able to make informed choices about their health
• can maximise their health and well being
• are supported by high quality services which are responsive to their needs
• do not experience inequalities in health
  

With over 330,000 people living in Croydon it is crucial that organisations work together to ensure a true multi-agency approach to improving health in Croydon. The Healthy Croydon Partnership is ambitious for improving the health of local people and for improving services. It has been responsible for developing a shared understanding of priorities for health and well being in the borough, selecting key priorities to be jointly worked on, and providing the context and commitment for successfully implementing improvements. Healthy Croydon oversees the development and monitoring of the health and well being elements of Croydon's Sustainable Community Strategy.

The Healthy Croydon Partnership comprises the most senior local representatives of health agencies, the council, voluntary sector, police, probation and business. This includes the Chairs of the NHS agencies, Council Cabinet and shadow cabinet members, elected members of the voluntary/community sector and a business representative. Chief Officers from each agency also attend and participate in the meetings. Attendance at meetings is extremely high, with additional expertise being brought in to deal with particular topics.

Healthy Croydon does not have formal decision making powers but it is, nevertheless, a highly influential body in shaping both strategy and service provision. Formal decisions need to be referred to the constituent partnership agencies. The Partnership as a whole is not able to vote to compel any member agency to take a particular course of action.

Healthy Croydon has a small Executive Group made up of Chief Officers and Directors of member organisations. It oversees and steers the work of the Partnership and is chaired by the Chief Executive of the PCT. The main work of Healthy Croydon is taken foward by fourteen Partnership Groups. They are each responsible for leading an aspect of health and social care provision e.g. Older People, Children & Young People, Mental Health, or a cross-cutting theme or support function, e.g. Carers, Community Involvement.

The main outcomes of working together have been:

• attracting additional resources
• better deployment of resources through joint commissioning
• better integration of services
• better joint planning of services
• promoting health and well being for all
• a clear focus on health inequalities

Healthy Croydon has successfully contributed to a £20m SRB bid for NW Croydon; a £1m bid for a Healthy Living Centre network; a Sure Start Programme. It has also set up its own Think Tank and Health Inequalities funding programmes. Healthy Croydon is also part of the national Communities for Health programme. As a measure of its desire to innovate and work jointly, the Partnership set up a series of Partnership in Action projects to use the flexibilities provided by the 1999 Health Act to jointly provide health and social care services. Croydon was the first authority in London to register an integrated service under the Act. These were services for people with learning disabilities. Subsequently, community services for people with mental health problems have similarly been integrated between Social Services and health services, operating under a single joint manager. The Healthy Croydon Partnership is also involved in the development of a number of joint strategies addressing issues such as Smoking Reduction, Teenage Pregancy, Obesity, Mental Health Promotion and Breastfeeding.

Croydon Council was awarded Beacon Status for its work on local health strategies in February 2001. Locally, the award was seen as recognition of the contributions of all partners to the success of the Healthy Croydon Partnership. The work of Healthy Croydon has been featured as a model of good practice in a number of publications and at regional and national conferences.

Contact details:
Steve Morton
Healthy Croydon Partnership Manager
Healthy Croydon Support Unit
4:01 Taberner House
Park Lane
Croydon CR9 2BA
Tel: 020 8760 5773 steve.morton@croydon.gov.uk

Healthy Croydon Briefing April 2007

Healthy School Awards
A further 20 Croydon schools have achieved healthy school status and received awards on Monday 26 March. There are four strands to the award: healthy eating; personal, social and health education; physical activity; and emotional health and well-being. School projects included a variety of sports activities being offered during the mandatory two hours of PE a week at Keston Primary; raffles at Fairchildes Primary where children receive a ticket if their lunch box contains a healthy choice such as a piece of fruit; and introduction of a school council at Monks Orchard Primary which has made decisions leading to an improvement in the eating environment. A total of 40 schools have now attained healthy school status.

New Croydon Council Chief Executive
Jon Rouse, 38, formerly chief executive of the Housing Corporation, has succeeded David Wechsler as Chief Executive of Croydon Council. He was previously Chief Executive of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, the Urban Task Force, English Partnerships and has also worked in the Department of the Environment as private secretary to the housing and local government minister. He said: “I hope to use my skills and experience in economic and social regeneration to help the council improve the borough’s town and neighbourhood centres, expand our housing and attract more jobs.” Council leader Cllr Mike Fisher said: “I believe we have identified a rising star in the public sector who, at a relatively young age, already has a strong record of achievement.” The appointment was ratified at a special meeting of the Council on Monday 26 March.

Healthy Croydon Briefing March 2007

Primary Care Strategy consultation
Croydon Primary Care Trust is consulting on plans to modernise primary care services in the borough and to provide a greater range of services in the community. Members of the public and key stakeholders are being asked to give their views. Copies of the consultation document and an invitation to submit a response have been sent to all Healthy Croydon Partnership members. You can download a copy of the consultation document in Word format from the Primary Care Trust website at www.croydon.nhs.uk. The consultation lasts until 25 May 2007.

Healthcare for London
NHS London has commissioned Professor Sir Ara Darzi one of London's most eminent clinicians and academics to lead a review of the capital's healthcare services. Over the next three months, Professor Darzi will be looking at healthcare systems around the world, at what works and what doesn’t, and at best practice in the United Kingdom. Healthcare For London: A Framework For Action will focus on patient pathways rather than buildings or institutions. It will develop a series of illustrative models of care and care pathways. It will draw on international examples of service delivery and evidence-based best practice.

The review will look at six key stages in a person’s life and the type of care and assistance they may receive at those times. They are:

• Birth
• Staying healthy
• Sudden severe illness
• Long term care
• Planned care
• End of life care
  

For more information about the review and how to comment visit the Healthcare for London website http://www.healthcareforlondon.nhs.uk

Beacon Awards
Croydon has been successful in the Beacon Awards scheme for the third year running. The scheme began in 2000 and is run by the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA). It aims to identify and disseminate excellence and innovation. Each year ten themes are selected, with intense competition to become a Beacon. Whilst the Beacon is awarded to the local authority the golden thread in all of Croydon’s successful bids has been the strength of its partnership working. This has been recognized by the IDeA in our six Beacon awards over the years. The credit for Croydon’s awards lies with all the organizations who have worked together to plan and deliver services for local people.

Increasing Voluntary Sector Delivery Beacon
The Healthy Croydon Partnership considered the key role of the voluntary sector at its meeting in November 2006. Croydon has based its work with the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) on developing and sustaining mature working relationships. This has ensured that as a matter of course the VCS is actively involved in, and influences, joint working in all aspects of delivery. This culture of strong partnership has paved the way for the development of appropriate structures to which all sectors are committed. There is a shared belief that the partnerships in Croydon are based on treating all sectors as equal partners. A change in the political administration of the authority has left these relationships unaffected. This has ensured that the VCS at a political level are prepared, and able, to act as a critical friend to ensure delivery of joint outcomes. This is underpinned by a commitment to a ‘Compact Way of Working’ which depends on a strong and established culture of good communication between all stakeholders. Commissioning arrangements have a strong focus on developing capacity within the VCS and the integration of Local Area Agreement blocks into the structures of the LSP have the voluntary sector as a key part.

Delivering Cleaner Air Beacon
Croydon has developed new and innovative solutions to the problem of air pollution, putting Croydon on the map both nationally and internationally. The council was the first to set up an airTEXT service, designed to support those sensitive to air pollution, providing air quality alerts and health advice on how to manage their symptoms. The London Borough of Croydon was the first council to implement regular idling vehicles enforcement patrols to help to improve the local air quality.

Previous Beacon Awards
2001
Local Health Strategies Beacon
Town Centre Regeneration Beacon
2005
Getting Closer to Communities Beacon
2006
Improving Housing Services by Involving Tenants Beacon