To: Bradford Metropolitan District Council

Protect the voluntary sector health improvement projects in Bradford

Protect the voluntary sector health improvement projects in Bradford.Protect the voluntary sector health improvement projects in Bradford. The grants end in March 17 and it is proposed that they are ended. This will save Bradford Council £1m annually.

Why is this important?

The figures released 16th November by the British Lung Foundation to mark World COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) Day, showed people living in Bradford are more than 50 per cent likely to die from life-limiting lung disease COPD than the UK average.

Quote: Telegraph and Argus - 11 Nov 2016 / Claire Wilde,
HEALTH bosses are setting up a crack team to tackle the district’s growing obesity epidemic.
Two-thirds of the district’s adults and a third of 11-year-olds are now overweight or obese, according to health figures, leading to an increased risk of cancer, heart disease, type two diabetes and other potentially fatal illnesses.
Back in May, the district was also revealed as the third “fattest” in England, with 1,907 hospital admissions linked to obesity in a year.
The new team, which will meet for the first time on November 29, will be asked to set out a system-wide action plan for battling the problem.
However, the proposals have been set out to cut £1m from the Health Improvement budget - key areas of work obesity - which impacts on copd, cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

Expected outcomes of such a cut:
• The VCS provide over and above what they are funded to deliver, recruiting and training volunteers in to support them with this work - this would end
• Whilst delivering this work people are encouraged to join other health improvement activities and services. There is a higher uptake of people accessing new initiatives by people who have already used a service and built trust with the workers
• VCS groups bring other funds into Bradford through writing funding bids to e.g. the Lottery and Trusts. As VCS overheads are covered in the work they undertake for the Health Improvement Team - these 'added value' funds would cease, as VCS groups close
• Disadvantage communities have seen the closure of many support agencies across Bradford and these cuts would add to this list - impacting on the health and wellbeing of whole communities
• VCS groups have built trust in these communities, having operated for many years. They engage with local people using a bottom up approach, delivering valuable services in ways that the Council cannot
• Work that is currently being built on will be lost – years of evaluations, processes, planning and delivery – with lessons learned and expertise built on

This is short sighted and in the long term will cost the Authority dearly, as the health of these communities quickly deteriorate further.

West Yorkshire

Maps © Stamen; Data © OSM and contributors, ODbL