Background and policy information
The programme aims to support, promote and influence the crucial health improvement role of the community and voluntary health sectors by working with and through a number of key partners for delivery.
Quick links on this page:
Healthy Communities: Meeting the Shared Challenge national capacity building support programme for community-led health
Engage - The magazine for the Meeting the Shared Challenge support programme
Delivery partners
Financial supports
Healthy Living Centre Support Programme (HLCSP) and HLC Alliance
Evaluation of Scottish Healthy Living Centres and the HLC Support Programme
Healthy Communities: Meeting the Shared Challenge national capacity building support programme for community-led health
Following the publication of a set of 12 recommendations from the Community-led: Supporting and Developing Healthy Communities Task Group (Community-led Task Group) in December 2006, NHS Health Scotland, on behalf of the Scottish Government, commissioned the Scottish Community Development Centre (SCDC) (external link) and the Community Health Exchange (CHEX) (external link) to deliver a capacity building support programme for community-led health in September 2007. This support programme was requested by the Scottish Government’s Health Improvement Strategy Division as a way of ensuring the co-ordinated implementation of the Community-led Task Group recommendations. All Community-led Task Group reports are available to download from this website.
The Meeting the Shared Challenge support programme is being rolled out across the whole of Scotland, via 12 delivery areas. A wide range of both public sector agencies and community-led health initiatives are involved to enable stronger and closer working relationships between them, while also developing their capacities to make community engagement more effective and productive. The programme also seeks to ensure that the contribution of community health initiatives to delivering local and national health improvement outcomes is better understood and clearly demonstrated to commissioners. SCDC and CHEX are supporting stakeholders across Scotland to develop a shared understanding of, and strategic commitment to, a community-led approach to health improvement and addressing health inequalities.
Meeting the Shared Challenge is being delivered in developmental phases and is currently funded until March 2009. Since the programme’s launch, SCDC has been engaging with a range of strategic and operational staff in Community Health Partnerships and Community Planning Partnerships, while CHEX is ensuring the ongoing involvement of community health initiatives and wider community and voluntary sector partners. Together these key stakeholders have formed Regional Development Groups in the following areas:
• Ayrshire
• Borders
• Clyde (essentially the former Argyll and Clyde area)
• Dumfries and Galloway
• Fife
• Forth Valley
• Glasgow
• Grampian
• Highland and Islands (including the three Islands health Boards/local authorities as well as Highland Council/NHS Highland
• Lanarkshire
• Lothian
• Tayside
To find out details of SCDC and CHEX staff working in each programme area, please visit the SCDC website (external link).
The support programme has two distinct phases:
• Programme development phase - December 2007 to April 2008. During this time, SCDC and CHEX worked with key stakeholders in health board areas to design a programme of support for each area.
• Programme delivery phase - April/May 2008 to March 2009. During this time SCDC and CHEX will be working in each area to deliver the support programme developed with local stakeholders.
Regional Development Group members advise on key local issues and concerns, activities and priorities in the area, oversee the dissemination of feedback, evaluate impact and advise on the local delivery of the support programme.
As part of this work, NHS Health Scotland has convened a National Reference Group to advise SCDC on this programme. It acts as a sounding board to comment on plans and proposals, advise on outcomes, and generally offer guidance where possible. This national reference group is chaired by Kathy O’Neill, General Manager of Clackmannanshire Community Health Partnership.
Engage - The magazine for the Meeting the Shared Challenge support programme
During the life of the Meeting the Shared Challenge support programme, NHS Health Scotland will issue regular magazines about the programme.
NHS Health Scotland will publish all issues of Engage here:
Engage Issue One October 2008
You can also access past copies of the Community-led Supporting and Developing Healthy Communities Task Group (CLTG) briefing papers here:
CLTG Briefing Paper March 2006
CLTG Briefing Paper June 2006
CLTG Briefing Paper September 2006
CLTG Briefing Paper October 2006
For further information about the Meeting the Shared Challenge support programme, please contact NHS Health Scotland's Community and Voluntary Sectors Programme, stating the nature of your query.
Delivery partners
The Community and Voluntary Sectors Programme works closely with ASH Scotland (external link), Community Food and Health (Scotland) (CFHS) (external link), Community Health Exchange (CHEX) (external link) and Voluntary Health Scotland (VHS) (external link).
Along with other programmes at NHS Health Scotland, it also works closely with Scotland’s health improvement structures such as Community Health Partnerships (CHPs) and Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs).
In partnership with other national agencies, such as COSLA (external link) and the Scottish Government (external link), the programme works to assist the sector to develop a clearer strategic direction for its work, which is underpinned by a robust evidence base.
Financial supports
Via the Community and Voluntary Sectors Programme, NHS Health Scotland provides financial support to the Community Health Exchange (CHEX) (external link) and the national Health Issues in the Community (HIIC) (external link) training, both of which are based within the Scottish Community Development Centre (external link). A full national evaluation of the Health Issues in the Community Course was undertaken in 2006.
NHS Health Scotland commissioned a strategic review of CHEX in 2007. Full and summary reports are available from this website.
NHS Health Scotland also financially supports the health improvement element of Voluntary Health Scotland (external link).
A strategic review of Voluntary Health Scotland was conducted during 2007. Full and summary reports are available from the NHS Health Scotland website.
Healthy Living Centre Support Programme (HLCSP) and HLC Alliance
The £300m HLC Programme was launched in 1999, helping to develop 352 HLCs in the UK with 47 of them established in Scotland.
Most Scottish HLCs were generally small voluntary organisations with funding from The Big Lottery Fund. All explicitly set out to tackle health inequalities in deprived communities of place and interest, but do so in a multitude of ways.
HLCs are diverse, with a wide range of target groups, across age ranges and cultures. Structurally, some HLCs are networks forging links across the community, while others operate as social enterprises, re-investing their earnings into their communities.
Crucially, HLCs have deep roots in the community and are ideally placed to understand the needs and work with local partners to effectively tackle local priorities.
They are an ideal access point for the statutory sector to engage with hard-to-reach groups because of their proven track record of reaching people through their use of their local knowledge and innovative delivery methods.
NHS Health Scotland successfully tendered for resources to provide a Healthy Living Centre Support Programme (HLCSP) on behalf of the Big Lottery Fund and it duly was established in April 2005. Funded by NHS Health Scotland until August 2008, the Support Programme aimed to provide a networking and capacity building function as well as assistance with planning and evaluation. It has helped identify and respond to key issues faced by HLCs in Scotland.
The HLC Support Programme has published an Evidence Summary Report (external link) which is intended to reach a wide audience of agencies and organisations who have a focus and interest in community health and well-being. The purpose is not to provide an exhaustive list of Healthy Living Centre services and activities but to highlight how their approach impacts on health improvement priorities and regeneration outcomes.
The Healthy Living Centre Support Programme has also been helpful in the establishment of an independent Scottish Healthy Living Centre Alliance, which was formed in November 2007. This HLC Alliance approached Scottish Government in early 2008 about the sustainability issues facing many Scottish Healthy Living Centres. As a result, a transitional fund of up to £2.5 million was allocated to HLCs to help them plan for sustainability. For more information about the HLC Alliance, please visit the HLC Support Programme website.
Evaluation of Scottish Healthy Living Centres and the HLC Support Programme
HLCs have proved themselves to be effective and credible mechanisms for the delivery of services to communities.
The University of Edinburgh's Research Unit in Health, Behaviour and Change was commissioned by Scottish Government and NHS Health Scotland to evaluate both the HLC Support Programme and HLCs nationally.