Support for Elected Members
Role of Councillors
Councils play such a fundamental role in creating the environment for communities to prosper and to enable the healthier choice to be the easier choice. Because councils can directly influence town planning, employment opportunities, social support, transport, education and housing, we need to ensure the impact on health and wellbeing we make is a positive one.
The role of the councillor is therefore very important in terms of influencing the positive health of communities through policy making, scrutiny, representational and community leadership role and the role in partnerships.
Evaluation Report of Elected Member Health Improvement Short Guide
In 2008 the Local Government Health Improvement Programme in NHS Health Scotland commissioned an evaluation of the short booklet entitled ‘How do councillors improve health and community wellbeing'. We would like to thank elected members and others for their excellent responses and engagement with the evaluation process. We feel this serves to demonstrate a strong commitment within councils to the heath improvement agenda. A total of 199 online responses were received (84% arising from elected members, with responses received from all 32 councils), in addition eight qualitative interviews, with 7 elected members and 1 council officer were conducted.
Elected Members Short Guide Evaluation Report (Final) Jan 2009
How do councillors improve health and community wellbeing? - Full reference guide
In September 2007 Health Scotland launched the short guide entitled "How do councillors improve health and community wellbeing?" This short guide was very well received following the launch conference. A full reference guide was also developed to support the use of the short guide and was pre-tested with a number of elected members at the launch event and received positive feedback.
Although there have been some policy changes since the reference guide and short guide materials have been produced, the content in the full reference guide still contains some very useful information and illustrations to back up the previously published short guide, and is now available electronically through the following link.
Full reference guide: How do councillors improve community health and wellbeing
Short Guide - How do councillors improve health and community wellbeing?
Following the May 2007 elections a high turnover of elected members was predicted and the Local Government Health Improvement Programme in Health Scotland began working on the development of a short health and wellbeing guide for councillors.
Short Guide: How do councillors improve health and community wellbeing?
This guide was officially launched on the 25 September 2007. It aims to highlight the role of the elected member from the perspectives of their electorate, their council and their role in partnerships such as Community Planning Partnerships, Community Health Partnerships and NHS Boards.
The launch event was well received by delegates, the following report gives the full detail on the day:
Report on elected members short guide launch
Key Note Speakers
Opening address for the launch of guidance for elected members
Cllr Hinds, Chair of Health Scotland
Role of local government in improving health and community wellbeing
Cllr McColl, COSLA Spokesperson for Health and Wellbeing
Workshop 1: The councils' role in health and wellbeing
Cllr Handibode and Michele Dowling, South Lanakshire Council
Workshop 2: Community representation and involvement
Elspeth Gracey, Community Health Exhange
Workshop 3: Councillors role in Community Health Partnerships
David Jack, City of Edinburgh Council
Workshop 4: Councillors role on Community Planning partnerships
Cllr Andrews and Robert Peat
Workshop 5: Scrutiny of Partnership
Cllr Robertson and Roger White, Aberdeenshire Council