Provider Development - Innovation Fund
This fund is now closed
For information on the aims of the fund and for news on successful projects please see below.
The Innovation Fund provided funding of £600,000 to support innovative and collaborative projects that aimed to deliver direct service efficiencies to local authorities and providers and improve outcomes for people who use services.
Proposals were invited from multi-agency partnerships or collaborations of local authority providers and / or voluntary, private and third sector providers, sponsored by at least one local authority, who were interested in piloting new and innovative approaches to improve adult social care in the North East.
Projects had to commence in February 2010 and be completed no later than 31 January 2011.
It was anticipated that a project value would be between £20,000 and £100,000, however in exceptional cases there was flexibility with these limits.
In order to be successful projects had to show an alignment to the personalisation of services.
Successful Projects
There were in excess of 30 submissions to the Innovation Fund.
On 21st January 2010 these bids were evaluated and nine projects were selected.
It is anticipated that these projects will provide invaluable learning and service improvements across the region.
Find out more about the successful projects below:
1 - Local Authority Approved Trader Scheme
The scheme will provide service users who are managing their own personal budget, and families together with other residents within Northumberland County, with a list of vetted service providers and trades-people who have satisfied agreed minimum standards. Standards may include background checks, into the principals of the business, employees and sub-contractors, County Court Judgements, Police Criminal records searches, Trading Standards complaint history checks and a requirement to provide evidence of public liability insurance.
The scheme will assist service users/residents, particularly those who are more vulnerable, to identify and make safer arrangements with service provider/traders who comply with rules and regulations which apply to their business and who operate in a fair and honest way and with high standards of work.
Shoot Your Mouth Off (SYMO) has been delivering digital media training and other arts activities to adults with learning disabilities in Hartlepool since 2007. SYMO have made award-winning films such as Cared Witless and have produced several episodes of an Internet-based soap opera, Hope Springs, which recently won an award for Best Acting at the Oska Bright Film Festival, which is exclusively for films made by people with learning disabilities.
The Worthwhile Work project will use the combined skills, talents and resources of staff and members to develop 2 health-based presentations aimed at improving the health and well-being of learning disabled people in the region. After consultation with the PCT and local advocacy groups SYMO have identified two subjects for the presentations which are of primary concern to people with a learning disability and their families and carers:obesity and improving access to health care. Both presentations will incorporate film and live performance delivered by group members, supported on stage by SYMO staff. The actors will receive intensive training in performance skills, including clear speech, and technical skills including delivery of PowerPoint presentations. The two productions will be taken out to interested groups and organisations, including: Learning Disability Partnership Boards, advocacy groups, health promotion events, schools, colleges, social care providers (including residential care homes) and organisations which train health care professionals.
3 - More to Life Than Services
This project is led by "LivesthroughFriends", a small training, consultancy and project management Community Interest Company who bring capacity and expertise to existing organisations. LivesthroughFriends has been working to develop a core knowledge and skill set for individuals and organisations who seek to support people who need social care and choose to self-direct. More to Life Than Services comprises a series of learning events plus discrete and tailored 'coalface' coaching and support including organisation development assistance.The events programme will comprise participative study days, with contributions from experts in their fields, tailored to inform and equip service providers who aspire to empower and enable people to self-direct,
Download an overview of the project here
Download project objectives here
4 - In-reach Service - Preventable Social Care in Acute Settings
The aim of this project, based in Middlesbrough, is to provide inreach from professional Telecare staff to an acute hospital setting, encouraging a change in working practices for both Care Link / Telecare staff and hospital staff to deliver choice, personalised services and improved outcomes for people as they are discharged from hospital.The project aims to integrate a telecare specialist into hospital services. They would work together with hospital staff across wards and outpatient departments to promote telecare as a preventative service and to assess individuals for appropriate telecare to support quicker and safer hospital discharge. Individuals who have a telecare service can access emergency help and support quickly, in many cases preventing hospital readmission and providing support and access to other services before a crisis occurs.
5 - Northumberland Social Care Community Network (NCDN)
NCDN is a county wide community organisation with a strong track record in establishing and maintaining networks and partnerships. NCDN co-hosts Northumberland LINk, and is responsible for the north and south east area groups, in assuring a voice for diverse communities. With Adapt NE, NCDN has been successful in attracting (one of only four in the country) an innovative action learning pilot project experimenting with extending the LINk model into the transport and access arena in addition to health and social care. NCDN also hosts the Northumberland VCS Learning Consortium, a partnership of over 50 VCS organisations working together to increase and improve the scope of VCS involvement in learning, skills and employability delivery and strategy.
This project will create a collaborative network for community-based providers of adult social care and other VCS organisations involved in supporting vulnerable people. The network sets out to complement the emerging Care Trust / Social Services-led 'Putting People First Providers' Forum', by creating a safe and independent environment in which VCS providers and would-be providers can explore and develop detailed plans for collaboration and innovation in response to the transformation agenda. The network will broker new cross-service relationships, explore and tender for further external sources of income, support workforce development, and underpin VCS involvement in community hubs and other aspects of delivery by developing a quality assurance framework for a joined up information, advice, support and referral infrastructure.
'My Signpost' is a web based information hub that not only guides individuals who are either self-funders or eligible for social care to a variety of services and support but is also interactive, enabling people to make their own positive contribution towards its use and development. It will provide access to services and equipment from the low level of support to the high end of social care and health in the quest for independent living.This project is being led by Independent Living Zone, a Community Interest Company that has been involved in variety of successful projects in the past such as :development of a community transport brokerage that achieved Business in the Community status (2001) and the Tom Cowie award; in conjunction with North Wales Adult Social Care, the establishment of a Disability Action Centre promoting disabled people's involvement in managing their own community services; and with Action for Differently Abled People in Tynedale introducing a Wheels to Work scheme working alongside Learning Skills Council and Department of Work & Pensions in creating a passage into work for young rurally unemployed.
7 - Darlington Independent Living & Home Care Health Monitoring
The project will look to buy equipment which will monitor vital signs [blood pressure , weight and so on] of existing residents and increasing numbers of day care service users, in Eden Cottage Care Home and The Gardens Care Home. The data provided will be passed to the service user's GP Practice, giving early warning signs of impending illness or identify complications arising with existing long-term conditions, thus cutting down on unnecessary GP visits and hospital admissions, reducing emergency admissions in particular. This process will also assist Day Care service users to monitor their own general health and manage existing long - term conditions much more effectively.
The project is being led by Eden Cottage Care Home (EDCH), a Care Ability Project to deliver free NVQ and Assessor Awards for Private and Voluntary Sector Providers across Darlington.as a collaboration between six private providers of social care, Darlington Borough Council, Darlington College and City Centre Training. EDCHis a member of NE Regional Skills Development Group which has developed successful strategies and guidelines used across the region for Medication Administration and Infection Control and is, at present, working on End of Life Care.
8 - Dementia is Everybodys Business
This project is led by the Dementia Care Partnership (DCP) in Newcastle. DCP is a charity providing a range of services including: home support service of approximately 1800 hrs/week for 243 clients and carers including an integrated service for 16 people from BME communities, and 41 younger people with dementia; day opportunities at three venues in Newcastle (north and west) and Hexham (covering rural areas of Tyndale) with approximately 180 people and more than 300 attendances per week including 6 from diverse communities; and approximately 2500 care and 1900 support hours in 13 Independent Supported Houses for 43 tenants across Newcastle.
The Dementia is Everybodys Business project is to be delivered in partnership with Newcastle Carers Centre and Adult Services. The project will test and pilot pathways, putting people with dementia and their carers in the lead, maximizing efficiencies without compromising quality and achieving positive outcomes.
The Citizen Support Exchange hub will have two main functions: 1) the exchange is a one stop shop/hub where citizens, and their families/carers, who have identified social care or support needs, can seek advice, information and support; 2) a hub, where people who are unemployed, or considering a career in supporting people, are offered real training opportunities. The hub will deliver exceptional workshops with bolt-on packages, all delivered by experts by experience. The Exchange is the result of a unique collaboration between the MAIN Project and Redcar and Cleveland Real Opportunity Centre (ROC), two regional User Led Organisations. This collaboration will ensure that the training on offer will not only be co-presented by people who are carers, and people with disabilities, but be representative of local issues and reflect current need.
The MAIN Project supports families of children with an Autistic Spectrum Condition (ASC), children and young people with an ASC and people who support those children and families.
The work covers the Tees Valley area, which includes Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, Stockton on Tees, Hartlepool and Darlington. The project is a registered charitable company limited by guarantee, with local trustees who are a mixture of carers, people with disabilities and local business people.
ROC is pan disability third sector ULO established in September 2006. All ROC trustees are local disabled people. ROC delivers a comprehensive portfolio of services and projects including: - Support to Redcar and Cleveland's Direct Payments Forum; co delivery of co-production in support planning for self directed support; information and Shopmobility Service; "Other Peoples Shoes" disability awareness training by 'experts by experience'; Disability Equality Duty - 2 conferences lead by disabled people to ensure real engagement.
To find out more about any of these projects download the summary of all 9 successful bids.
For further Information on the Provider Development Project or the Innovation Fund, contact:
Julie Brown, Programme Manager 07917 813 667 or email julie.brown@northeastcouncils.gov.uk