NEWSLETTER ISSUE #
12

The East Sussex Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA)

The East Sussex Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) is available at

www.eastsussexjsna.org.uk. The site contains both local and national resources for those who commission, provide or use health and social care services in East Sussex.

On the site, you will find:

data in the form of scorecards
area summaries
local needs assessments
profiles that compare our local data with national data
overview reports and briefings that pull information from a wide range of sources into one document
…and much much more

The site is added to regularly, so to keep up-to-date please subscribe to a short monthly email alert here www.eastsussexjsna.org.uk/subscribe

The Care Act Launches in April

The social care parts of the Care Act come into force next month, bringing significant changes to care and support nationally.

Adult Social Care and Health have been working to implement the changes, which cover a range of areas including:

how we protect vulnerable people (safeguarding),
having someone to help you represent yourself (advocacy)
who qualifies for social care (eligibility criteria), and
what sort of information and advice we offer people – including financial.

At the same time, the Department of Health is currently consulting on their draft guidance to implement the well-publicised cap on care costs and a new appeals system – these will come into force next April in a second wave of reforms. The guidance consultation closes on 30 March.

Adult Social Care and Health have also just finished a public consultation on changes to the East Sussex Deferred Payments Scheme, which helps residents pay for nursing and residential care.

For more information on the Care Act visit: www.eastsussex.gov.uk/careact

Safer East Sussex

Safter East Sussex Newsletters:
October 2014 - In focus - Road Safety
December 2014 - In focus - Safer in East Sussex
February 2015 - In focus - Young People

Marketing training held for voluntary and community organisations in East Sussex

A variety of local voluntary and community organisations from across East Sussex recently attended a marketing training workshop to learn more about promoting their businesses and working in the community.The event was organised by Volunteer Centre East Sussex, 3VA and Amey, who worked together to offer an interactive training session focused on a variety of marketing and public relations topics.Workshops included:

Public relations – developing relationships with local media and writing successful press releases
Social media – the available options and which is most suitable for different organisations
Effective networking – why is it important and how to make it useful for your organisation

Running a successful, profit-making community organisation.

Adam Chugg, Chief Executive Officer at 3VA, said: “As a council for voluntary action seeking to support and develop local charities, 3VA was delighted to collaborate with Amey who brought a wealth of marketing expertise and shared it with local voluntary and community organisations throughout Eastbourne, Lewes District and Wealden. Participants from the voluntary sector found the session extremely valuable.”The session included master classes, mini-training, discussions and networking opportunities. Real examples of work being done across the country were shared to show how successful marketing can benefit organisations.

The Annual Report of the Director of Public Health 2014/15

The report is available here.

This annual report focuses on how we can build resilience by growing the assets of wellbeing across East Sussex. These include the skills and capacities of the individuals, the formal and informal networks and associations, the institutions, the land and other physical assets within a community.

Mentor Support for 18-24 Year olds to Find WorkTalent Match is a new and different programme to help unemployed people find work, and Eastbourne and Hastings are included!

If you know someone (including our customers) who is 18–24 years old, living in Eastbourne or Hastings and has been unemployed for more than 12 months they should give Talent Match a chance.

They will be matched with a mentor who will help them with their journey to find work as well as gain qualifications, build confidence and find them work experience, which employers look for.

For more details please call or text Stacey on 07415 366023, or email Stacey.hide@princes-trust.org.uk

For more information online, please click here. The site contains both local and national resources for those who commission, provide or use health and social care services in East Sussex.

Benefits Advice Continues in East Sussex

The East Sussex Welfare Reform project, funded by East Sussex County Council Supporting People, is now in its second year. The project continues to offer free, confidential, quality assured benefits advice to all working age people living inEast Sussex. Advice can be given by phone, face to face or in some circumstances, home visits. In the last quarter alone (October – December 2014) our helpline received over 1000 calls and our team of Benefits Advisors helped over 400 people resolve their benefit problems, including help with appeals. We are delighted to announce that Supporting People have agreed to fund these services for another year until 31st March 2016.

Building Links with the Health Sector

In summer 2014 the Hastings and Rother Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) launched a £5m Health Inequalities Action Plan to tackle poor health in the area. The plan recognises the negative impact that experiencing problems with benefits can have on health, particularly amongst older people, people with long term conditions (including mental health) and young families. East Sussex Welfare Reform has begun working in partnership with Hastings and Rother CCG to ensure all GPs and other healthcare professionals in Hastings and Rother can refer patients experiencing benefit problems to the services for support.

This work will include offering training or awareness-raising of the Welfare Reform services amongst GPs, practice staff and other healthcare professionals and offering benefits advice surgeries in healthcare settings in Hastings and Rother.

Enhanced Hastings and Rother Service

Funding from Hastings and Rother CCG also means that from 1st January 2015, ALL people living in Hastings and Rother will have access to free benefits advice, this includes older people, not just those of working age.

Help for Professionals working with Vulnerable People

Did you know that the Welfare Benefits Helpline also supports professionals in East Sussex with benefits queries? We frequently work with front line staff within the public and voluntary sector to help resolve problems for clients, for example Mental Health, Adult Social Care and Children’s Services teams along with food banks, carer’s organisations and community support groups. We welcome calls or emails from service providers.

Ring the Welfare Benefits Helpline on 0333 344 0681 or email benefitseastsussex@harcuk.com

For any further information please contact the Project Coordinator, Nicky Woollard, on (01273) 519140 or email welfare.reform@sussexcommunity.org.uk

CONSULTATIONS

Big Advice Survey - Eastborne

The Eastbourne Advice Network, led by BHT, is working closely with other advice providers in the town ensure our services are sustainable for the future. As part of this work, we are looking at what the people of Eastbourne’s advice needs are. We also need to know how they want to access advice and need advice services to be delivered. To get the views of Eastbourne residents we’re taking part in the national Big Advice Survey. We will be able to get access to all the survey responses for Eastbourne and will be able to compare it with responses for other areas in the country. This data will inform our Advice Strategy and can be used to help develop our services as well as inform funding bids.

The Big Advice Survey looks at how we deal with problems in our daily lives and where advice fits in. It also explores the potential for alternative ways of delivering advice and information services e.g. digital, as well as a range of other areas e.g. the relationship between advice and health and wellbeing.

It is being carried out across the UK. The survey is entirely anonymous and only takes a few minutes to complete.

Here is a link to the website: http://bigadvicesurvey.org.uk/ for more information and here is a direct link to the survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BigAdviceSurvey

Have your say at the East Sussex Have your Say Hub

Please visit the East Sussex Have your Say Hub for opportunities to give your views. You can search for consultations by keyword, postcode, interest etc. You can also see how previous feedback has influenced our decision making process and what has happened as an outcome.

Hastings Development Management Plan: Inspector’s Preliminary Findings on HBC Development Management Plan – consultation now under way

Following the Hearing Sessions held as part of the Examination into the Hastings Development Management Plan, the independent Planning Inspector has issued his Preliminary Findings which include his proposed ‘Main Modifications’ - these are changes that he currently considers are needed to make the Plan sound and enable it to proceed towards adoption. The Inspector has asked the Council to consult on these proposed Main Modifications in order that he may consider any further representations prior to him compiling his final report. The consultation closes at 4:30pm on Friday 27 March 2015.

Documents available online at: http://www.hastings.gov.uk/environment_planning/planning/localplan/dm_plan_siteallocations/dmplan_examination/inspectorspreliminaryfindings/ or paper copies can be collected from the Community Contact Centre, Hastings Town Hall, TN34 1QR during opening hours.

WHATS ON

Jerwood Gallery

How to write your Artist's Statement

Saturday 7 March - 12.30pm - 3.30pm.

Are you struggling to write your artist’s statement? Explore what you really want to say and say it in our three hour practical workshop lead by Colin Pink.

The workshop content includes:
• What’s the purpose of a statement?
• Learn to create a powerful visualisation to surface your ideas
• How to organise your thoughts and structure a statement
• Discuss real examples of good and poor quality statements
• Drafting your statement
• How to review and revise the statement.

Each participant will come away with their own artist’s statement at the end of the workshop.

£45 per person

Booking essential as places are limited. To book, please call 01424 728377 during gallery opening hours.

Portrait Collage Workshop

Saturday 14 March - 11.30am - 4.30pm

Join Julia Andrews-Clifford for a portrait collage workshop and make a 3D collage of yourself or family member, and take home your own framed original. In this workshop you will gain basic skills in collage, composition, picture-mounting and finishing, and learn how to work creatively with family photos.

£27 per person

Booking essential as places are limited. To book, please call 01424 728377 during gallery opening hours.

Upcoming training opportunities hosted by 3VA

Treasurer's Essentials

3 March, Eastbourne

This course will look at the roles and responsibility of the Treasurer; understand what financial records are; be familiar with setting and using budgets and look at different types of accounting; understand the legal aspects of accounts. Book here.

An Introduction to Child Protection

17 March, Eastbourne

This course is aimed to be an introductory course on Child Protection, open to anyone working with children or young people in the voluntary and community sector. Book here.

An Introduction to Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults

29 April , Eastbourne

We’re pleased to announce this free course in partnership with East Sussex County Council. The course is aimed to be an introductory course on Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults, open to anyone working with vulnerable adults in the voluntary and community sector. Book here.

MEETING UPDATES

East Sussex Strategic Partnership Board Meetings
To view papers and minutes of previous ESSP Board meetings, see the meetings page of the ESSP website. The next meeting is on 21 May 2015 at 10am, County Hall, East Sussex County Council, Lewes BN7 1UE.

Older People’s Partnership Board: Update for ESSP E-News

At its meeting on 13 February 2015, the Older People’s Partnership Board discussed:

The Otago Strength and Balance Exercise Training Programme, a free 16 week programme of exercise classes designed to reduce an individual’s risk of falling, currently being offered across East Sussex via GP referral.
The award of a contract to Sussex Community Development Association to run 3 day centres for older people in Bexhill, Lewes and Hastings
The priorities of High Weald Lewes Havens CCG for the 13 community services that are currently going through a procurement process
The impact of the unprecedented demand for health services witnessed in December 2014/January 2015
The Sussex Patient Transport Service, currently being consulted on before a new contract is awarded from April 2016

Full minutes of all meetings can be found at:

http://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/community/over50s/developingservices/partnershipboard.htm

EAST SUSSEX IN FIGURES

East Sussex in Figures (ESiF) is the local information system (LIS) for the county. It’s a website that provides access to essential data, information and analysis.

Headlines

We will be holding three ESiF training courses in 2015; they will take place on 23 March, 18 May and 14 September. The courses are morning sessions taking place at St Marys House, Eastbourne – Joining instructions

A new suite of boundary maps have been published on ESiF. Revised maps of the South East LEP, districts, wards, parishes, county electoral divisions and lower super output areas for each district are now available.

New Publications

Average (median) earnings for full-time jobs based in East Sussex are lower than in the rest of the South East or Great Britain as a whole. Full-time jobs in Rother district have the lowest pay of any district in the country – See report

Latest datasets – highlights

JSA Claimant count – Updated

Births, deaths and natural change – updated

House prices – updated

Housing need – updated

Social housing stock – updated

Housing starts and completions – updated

Dwelling stock – 2011 Census data

Household amenities - 2011 Census data

Household spaces, occupancy and type – 2011 Census data

Housing quality – 2011 Census data

Tenure – 2011 Census data