Grant programme set to enhance health and wellbeing in communities across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon, and Wiltshire

Residents across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire are set to benefit from a new grant programme to improve health and wellbeing and reduce health inequalities across our communities.

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

The grants are part of a dedicated focus by BSW ICB to promote fairness and tackle 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 and wellbeing.

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 gender and geographical location. There are also pockets of deep deprivation and inequality within each area.

Previously, grants will have been awarded to 35 different projects. Grant recipients include projects to provide well-being support to ethnic minority groups during discharge from hospital in Bath and North East Somerset, 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.

Steve Maddern, Director of Public Health at Swindon Borough Council and Senior Responsible Officer for Health Inequalities for Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board said:

“Too many residents across BSW are experiencing unequal health outcomes. Addressing inequalities is a top priority for BSW ICB and this grant funding programme will directly benefit communities most impacted by poorer health outcomes by empowering our colleagues in the Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Sector, local authorities, hospitals and other health and care settings to improve the health and wellbeing of our communities”

Toni Swaby, Acting Manager at B&NES-based grant recipient Bath Ethnic Minority Senior Citizens Association (BEMSCA) said:

“We at BEMSCA are extremely proud to be part of this project which has shown us that there is the need for more multi-agency working, language support and cultural support to meet the health and well-being needs of people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) groups and the current role of the Community Connector provided by (BEMSCA). The grant we have received will help to link, expand and strengthen services to support the most vulnerable in our community.”

Claire Garrett, Chief Executive Officer of the Swindon-based refugees and asylum seeker support group the Harbour Project said:

“This project has been really beneficial for Harbour’s clients and is a model that we hope to develop further in the future. We recently held a health fair for our women, attended by a number of agencies and were able to provide women from asylum seeker and refugee backgrounds with help to improve women’s health and offer guidance on where they can seek support in Swindon”

Elena King, Senior Project Manager at the Centre for Sustainable Energy said:

‘’Being able to run our pilot project to support people with long-term conditions in accessing fuel poverty support and advice is extremely exciting. It will help raise awareness of the correlation between fuel poverty and certain health conditions and improve patients’ ability to heat their homes efficiently and look after themselves independently.’’