Wandsworth Care Alliance

The National Budget – VCS response

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The Chancellor’s autumn budget statement announced changes that will all impact employers, including Voluntary Sector Organisations (VSOs) with paid staff.
 
The proposed National Insurance Increase along with the London Living Wage increase could have a significant impact on VSOs’ ability to deliver on existing contracts. Many VSOs receive the majority of their funding from The South West London ICB (NHS) and Wandsworth Council. VSOs play an invaluable role in preventing residents’ social, financial, medical and mental health issues from escalating and dramatically reduce the demand on NHS services. The consequences of these announced changes could therefore be catastrophic for the vulnerable residents that VSOs support.

WCA, as part of the South West London Voluntary Sector Alliance, addressed these concerns collectively as a written Call to Action to senior staff of the South West London ICB and Wandsworth Council.
 

Read our letter to the council and the responses from both the Council and the ICB below:

SWL VCSE – Impact of increase in National Insurance
Impact of National Insurance Increase on South West London VCSE Organisations

If you are a VSO with paid staff funded by either the Council or ICB, please do reach out to your commissioning officer to discuss how this may impact you. And as always, please do reach out to us at WCA if you would like to discuss this further with us  admin@wandcareall.org.uk.

Voluntary Sector Forum – December 2024 highlights

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On Wednesday 4th December we had our last Voluntary Sector Forum meeting of 2024. Which took place at Caius House in one of the well-equipped modern meeting rooms, where we had presentations and updates shared. Thank you to everyone who joined us.

Abi Carter our Voluntary Sector Representative on the Health and Wellbeing Board shared an enlightening presentation on the role of the Board and how the voluntary sector voice can influence decisions and plans relating to Health and Care.

241202 Wandsworth HWB overview for WVSF (4.12.24)Download

We had updates from Children and Young People’s Alliance, Older People’s Alliance and Mentoring Opportunities for Developing Organisations, which was given by Wandsworth Care Alliance’s Development Manager, Ravi Vyas.
Give us feedback on how they receive funding information from us via this survey.

  • E-mail (ravi@wandcareall.org.uk) if you’d like to join the Children / Young People and/or Older People’s Alliance.
  • E-mail (ravi@wandcareall.org.uk) if you need any support with setting up your organisation, with funding help (finding and writing), networking opportunities, and capacity building.
  • E-mail (alice@wandcareall.org.uk) if you need any support with social media, marketing, and branding and fundraising. For more information on these mentorship programmes for branding click here and for fundraising support sessions click here.

Wandsworth Borough of Culture updates on the next steps for the voluntary sector, were given by Arts and Culture Officer, Chief Executive’s Group Wandsworth Council, Roisin Kerslake-Sim.

Voluntary Sector LBOC slides – 27.11.2024Download

Doing Good In Wandsworth is WCA’s new newsletter for matching voluntary organisations to sponsorships and resources from local businesses updates were given by Wandsworth Care Alliance’s, Volunteering Project Officer, Jummy Olaleye.

The Doing Good In Wandsworth newsletter aims to promote and make aware the work, initiatives and needs of local charities to local businesses and corporations in the borough and even outside of the borough. With this newsletter we want to see charities get the support they need and highlight the support of local businesses and corporates to the community.

Take a look at our first newsletter – Doing Good In Wandsworth

Sign up to our Doing Good In Wandsworth newsletter here.

Updates were followed with some presentations from Wandsworth Council on Wandsworth Council’s Winter Plan, which was given to us by Hollie Stone and Melissa Barker, Public Health Lead, Health Protection Team.

Wandsworth Winter Health 2024 – Slides and Information PackDownload
  1. A link to a Microsoft Form which VCS can complete to request printed copies of cold weather and vaccination posters – https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=rPXT2QP4vkmUnxSnB010p20x_vJLX0ROppFyT52VYTtUQTlMM085MDNRNFY4S0c4UjRHSzlHQUNLMi4u
  2. Please get in contact with healthprotection@richmondandwandsworth.gov.uk if your organisations is having any events before the end of January where you would like the roving team to attend to deliver winter vaccinations and/or information sessions. 

Paradise Cooperative, Eve Rogers shared a good news story on how they evolved their corporate volunteering offer as an alternative (and lucrative) model to generate income for their organisation – this clearly inspired other organisations present to think how they might do something similar.

VSF Paradise PhotosDownload

After an insightful sharing of updates and presentations from our speakers, the floor was open to the room to share updates, achievements, concerns or potential joint actions in the borough.

We had organisations in attendance such as:
Wandsworth Older Peoples Forum
WCEN
Happy Homes
The Heart and Lung Choir
Power2Connect
Generate
Wandsworth Council

For updates on when our next one will be please visit our eventbrite page here.

Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month

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Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month, held each November, aims to highlight the unique mental health struggles men face and encourage open conversations about mental health. While many men experience anxiety, depression, and stress, societal pressures can make it difficult for them to seek help, often resulting in silence and isolation.

Poor mental health can affect people of any gender, but mental health outcomes for men and women aren’t equal. Due to societal expectations of masculinity, men are less likely to talk to others about their feelings, so they suffer in silence.

This awareness month challenges stigmas, encourages men to seek support, and emphasises the importance of mental health services tailored for men. Through increased awareness, we can promote healthier coping strategies and foster supportive environments for men everywhere.

Tips for supporting Men’s Mental Health:

  • Encourage open conversations.
  • Normalise seeking therapy or counselling.
  • Promote self-care routines and healthy outlets for stress.
  • Foster supportive environments for men

Here are few organisations that provide support for men’s mental health:

To share resources for this article please contact communications@wandcareall.org.uk

IVAR – Women’s Health Conference

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On 11th September we attended the Women’s Health Conference at the Wandsworth Town Hall, hosted by the Mayor of Wandsworth, Councillor Sana Jafri, in collaboration with Women of Wandsworth.

One of the topics discussed was cervical screening; Wandsworth has some of the lowest cervical screening uptake rates in England, particularly in South Asian communities. Wandsworth Care Alliance, in collaboration with research organisation IVAR, have been doing some outreach to organisations that engage with women from a South Asian background. We want to understand potential barriers those women face in relation to uptake of screening, and some of the opportunities we can use for driving uptake.

Read more about the background of the project here.

Some of the findings from this event are written below:

Advertising cervical screening

  • We should broaden our thinking and target specific groups of people. For example, where do mums go? Stay and play sessions, play groups, etc. – let’s put up posters or leaflets there.
  • Can we do some outreach in smaller community groups or organisations?
  • Can we use social media or WhatsApp groups?

Language

  • Let’s think about the type of language and specific words we’re using. “Cancer” and “screening” may already be scary words for some people; therefore, we need to have easily accessible information that explains everything clearly and concisely so people can be properly informed rather than scared.
  • Professionals should also be mindful of potentially complex terminology they are using with individuals who may not speak English fluently. There are sometimes no words for certain medical procedures, conditions or instruments in certain languages. For example, there is no word for “hysterectomy” in Urdu.
  • We should make specific wording choices and use diagrams and pictures in order to aid us in explaining things clearly.

Taboo topic

  • Cervical screening is often considered an embarrassing topic to talk about. It is important to have ‘ladies only’ sessions and follow up in the community, in comfortable/safe environments. You must meet people in the places they are already going.
  • It’s good to be well informed and know the science behind why screening is important (e.g. early diagnosis, correct information). This makes it less taboo as we know that it’s an extremely common practice that everyone goes through.
  • We should be having early conversations to show it’s a normal thing to talk about. This should be in schools or before people are sexually active or having children.

    Resources:
  • Cancer Research UK – Cervical Cancer Screening

If you’d like to discuss or add to this article, please contact communications@wandcareall.org.uk

Access to Food in Wandsworth: Challenges and Community Solutions

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The above image is of Deaba from Deaba Catering CIC


Access to Food in Wandsworth: Challenges and Community Solutions

Access to nutritious and affordable food is an important and vital need, yet many residents in Wandsworth face significant barriers in accessing it. With the rising cost of living and the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity has become a growing concern.

The cost of housing and other living expenses in the borough has been steadily rising, leaving some families with limited budgets for food. For many, this means choosing between paying for rent, utilities, and other essentials or putting food on the table.

Below we are highlighting the community-driven efforts to address these issues.

Community resources

In response to the growing need, several community organizations in Wandsworth have stepped up to provide support and resources to those struggling with access to food.

Saving money food places 

The Healthier Catering Commitment is a scheme that helps food businesses offer healthier choices to their customers. The scheme recognises businesses in London that demonstrate a commitment to reducing the levels of saturated fat, salt and sugar in the food sold in their premises. Refer to the map to find out where you can find healthier items on the menu before the next time you eat out. 

The list below is some great places you’re able to reduce food waste and find more affordable options to accessing food.

Want to donate food?

If you’re looking for ways to donate and support others who are experiencing hardship, we have a list below you can see.

  • You’re able to donate food items, toiletries, money and your time to Wandsworth Food Bank to support others.
  • Supermarkets – your local supermarket will have a food donation box or a food donation bag that you’re able to buy for someone who needs it.
  • You can make a donation to Wandsworth Food Bus.
  • FoodCycle also take donations from small businesses, supermarkets or anywhere providing fresh produce.

Volunteering Opportunities

If you’re interested in volunteering for organisations in Wandsworth who are helping to support others going through hardship, we’ve highlighted a few organisations who take on volunteers.

  • Food cycle are looking for volunteers and they have a wide range of roles to suit different skill sets. Learn more here. 
  • Family Action. Volunteer and help strengthen families and communities.

By working together, the community can continue to develop innovative solutions to ensure that no one in Wandsworth goes hungry. For current events in the community have a look on our events page.

Do you or someone you know urgently need help? Click here to learn more on how to get help with access to food. 

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