Making Wrens Nest Healthier (using what we’ve already got!)

Tea and toast and a chance out find out more about an exciting new project5 October 2012, Wrens Nest Community Centre

Our plan for this morning: 9.30-10.30am

1. Welcome and information about the project (15 minutes) Lorna Prescott2. The Skills Game (10 minutes) Ann Aston3. Community research on Wrens Nest (10 minutes) Ann Aston4. Community projects game (10 minutes) Myra Thompson5. Ways you can get involved (5 minutes) Lorna Prescott6. What do you think? Any questions? (10 minutes) Everyone

A new approach to health and wellbeing(using what we’ve already got!)

Wellbeing is about how we are in ourselves – our emotions, judgements and experiences. Some things inside us affect our wellbeing and how we feel - such as our health, optimism and self-esteem. Also things around us affect our wellbeing - things such as income, housing, education and social networks.

This project is taking a wellbeing approach and will:• look at what makes people’s lives go well, rather than focusing on what can go wrong• look at the positive things people bring to situations and communities – their assets,

rather than looking only at what people lack or need• think about ways that people can feel confident to make improvements in their own lives• treat people’s emotional and social needs as being important (not just their economic

circumstances).

When we understand what makes people’s lives go well, see the positive things people bring to situations, and understand people’s emotional and social needs, projects and services can be better designed...

From a guide called Measuring Wellbeing by NEF.

Doing things differently in DudleyWrens Nest is the first area in Dudley where this asset approach to health improvement is being tried out. We’re working Wrens Nest because local residents Ann Aston and Myra Thompson from the Behind Closed Doors project volunteered to come on a day training course and then spent loads of their own time carrying out community research in Wrens Nest. Thanks to their ideas and dedication, we’ve allocated £40,000 of project funding to be spent by people in Wrens Nest who have great ideas of ways to improve people’s health using as asset approach.

We want to find out more about, shout about and make the most of the passions, skills, knowledge and connections which people in Wrens Nest have.

And ... we want to prove to decision-makers that we can make Wrens Nest healthier using what people have already got.

This is Val Little, the Director of Public Health in Dudley.She has made this project possible, and is counting on all of us to have lots of great ideas, try things out and collect lots of information about what we do and whether it improves wellbeing.

We’ll have a co-ordinating group for the project, which will also involve people from Lions Boxing Club in Brierley Hill, as they are also trying out this new approach. Anyone can join the co-ordinating group. Together we’ll plan the whole project and develop something which other people can use if they want to do something like this, using everything that we learn along the way.

Asset working seeks ways to value the assets, nurture and connect them for the benefit of individuals, families and neighbourhoods. Instead of starting with the problems, it starts with what is working, what makes us feel well and what people care about.

From a guide called What Makes us Healthy by Jane Foot

Linking with people that do amazing workTo help us with ideas about good ways to go about things we’re teaming up with people from outside Dudley who are well respected, who know their stuff and who can help us to offer really high quality opportunities to anyone who wants to get involved.

We’ll also feature this project and blog about our progress on a new (yet to be launched) website called Creative Collaboration in Dudley. If you can help with blogging, photography, making videos, using twitter or Facebook and so on - let us know!

The project and opportunities

Women Take Part in Health Improvement

A series of 12 days of (free) learning over 9 months or so, building the

confidence and knowledge of women to take action and influence

decision making

Mental Health and Wellbeing Level 2

qualificationA new qualification to be offered by the Royal Society for Public Health. We hope to offer eople

involved in this project free places.

The Asset Approach in to Action!

We hope that there will be lots of ideas from people who live,

volunteer and work in Wrens Nest about ways to use assets to improve

health and wellbeing.The £40,000 can be used to help the

ideas become reality.

Linking with Lions Boxing Club and their

assets workSharing ideas and learning with our other pilot project

in Brierley Hill.

Co-ordinating GroupWill probably meet once a

month. A time for having ideas, thinking, learning and

evaluating what we do.

Learning about what works

Developing things other people can use for projects like this Proving that we have

improved wellbeing in Wrens Nest and

influencing decision makers

A bit of information about the staff involved in the projectLorna Prescott

I'm actually trained in mechanical engineering, but all of my work has been in communities. When I moved here the first people I met in Dudley were from Wrens Nest. I volunteered at Groundwork Black Country in 1997 and worked on projects on Wrens Nest and the Priory. I helped to find funding for Wrens Nest Tools Library, worked with young people at the house on Summer Road by the estate office, and did environmental projects with pupils at Wrens Nest Primary School.

After that I did a lot of work with Tenants Associations across the whole of Dudley borough, as part of a project that Dudley College took the lead on. Then I worked for Dosti for 10 years, running a grants programme and bringing together representatives from different community and faith networks to try and have a say in decisions being made about Dudley.

Since April 2011 I've been a senior officer at Dudley CVS. Other work I lead on includes supporting the East Coseley Big Local Community Forum and providing training to the council, police, NHS and others to improve the ways that they work with communities.

I love twitter and blogging, and set up social media surgeries in Dudley, Stourbridge and Brierley Hill and so that people from local clubs, groups and societies can use social media to connect and work together. I've also been lucky to be involved in a national charity, Community Development Exchange. I was the chair for two years and so have got some great connections with people doing amazing work in other parts of the country. I also volunteer in Dudley, I was a special friend and a governor at Brierley Hill Primary School for 7 years, and now I run social media surgeries in my own time (unpaid).

About a day a week of my time for a year will be on this project in Wrens Nest. You can contact me on 01384 267421, email lorna@dudleycvs.org.uk or on twitter @dudleycvs

Jody Pritchard

Jody is the Community Health Improvement Programme Manager in Public Health, Dudley Primary Care Trust. She has experience of working in both the NHS and Dudley Council and has been responsible for a range of health, wellbeing and active citizenship programmes. Jody manages a team of people with projects like young people's health, alcohol, cancer prevention, healthy communities volunteers and community health champions. Jody has a degree in Sports Science and a Postgraduate Diploma and MSc in Health Promotion. She has always been very passionate about working and volunteering in a community setting and has volunteered for Dudley Youth Offending Service as a Community Panel Member since February 2002.