Grant programme launched to enhance health and wellbeing in disadvantaged communities across BSW

People across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire are set to benefit from a new grants programme to improve health and wellbeing in disadvantaged communities.

The Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board (BSW ICB) has earmarked around £1.7m annually for five years to empower local Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise Sector (VCSE) groups to help local people with health and wellbeing issues.

The grants are part of a dedicated focus by BSW ICB to address unfair and avoidable differences in population health across the area and drive forward work programmes that reduce inequalities, prevent poor health and improve people’s opportunities for better health.

These health inequalities across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire have wide-reaching consequences. Life expectancy across the three areas varies from 73 years to 91 years according to sex and geographical location. There are also pockets of deep deprivation and inequality within each area, including two neighbourhoods within the most deprived 10 per cent nationally.

During the programme’s first year, grants will be awarded to 35 different projects. Grant recipients include projects to provide well-being support to ethnic minority groups during discharge from hospital in BaNES, advice for asylum seekers and refugees on how to access health services in Swindon and help with access to fuel poverty support for people with long-term conditions in Wiltshire.

We will provide further updates on the grant programme in future issue of The Triangle.