Improving health and wellbeing of Leeds residents is aim of new strategy

Leeds Community Healthcare (LCH) relies on charities, community and voluntary groups - known as third sector organisations - to connect to vulnerable groups of people and help it provide a wide range of services including district nursing and mental health services.

LCH is concerned that the Covid-19 pandemic has had a major impact on third sector organisations and wants to help ensure they survive and thrive.

The views of more than 300 third sector health and care organisations are at the heart of LCH's first ever Third Sector Strategy, which was set to be launched today. (Tues 15 Sept)

The strategy sets out a shared ambition to improve the health and wellbeing of Leeds residents by including them as partners in their own care.

It has been developed jointly with Forum Central, which represents the city’s third sector health and care organisations.

LCH programme leader Dan Barnett said: "The LCH third sector strategy is about us being a good partner to the many health brilliant charities that are working within Leeds.

"They help us deliver better health services by connecting us with different kinds of community groups and by broadening out what our services can offer.

"Our commitment to them is to make sure that local charities are properly funded to do this and are supported to be successful."

Rachel Cooper speaking on behalf of Forum Central, said: “The strategy presents an opportunity for Forum Central’s 300 plus strong membership and beyond to achieve a healthcare system that is co-produced and shaped by the voices of our communities."

Brodie Clark, LCH’s new board chair, said: “Our Third Sector Strategy is about our shared aims for health and wellbeing and creating services which seeks to close the inequality gap particularly by helping to improve the health of the poorest.

“I firmly believe that we serve the people of Leeds and we can only do that if we listen, learn and act.

"Being able to tap into the third sector’s knowledge and understanding of the strengths within our communities and our patients will allow us to hear their voices more clearly and co-create health services that deliver what they need, in the places where they are.

"This is critically important for the most marginalised groups in our society whose needs are often not clearly understood because services may find it difficult to reach them."

The Strategy was set to be formally launched at the trust’s virtual Annual General Meeting today.