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Having your say about carers in Bromley
Carers’ Week 2011 13 -19 June
Free Training & Information for Carers
Movers & Groovers project develops social networking communication to extend its reach

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Help shape the future of policing in London
Bromley Healthcare Community Forum
Bromley Healthcare Community Governors elected
Consultation on closure of Children and Families centres
LBB Decision on personalisation and charging policy

Carers’ Week 2011 13 -19 June

Carers Week in 2011 will explore ‘The True Face of Carers’. It will look at the following questions:

How hard is life as a carer? Or how easy?
How much help do carers actually receive from statutory agencies and government, local and national? Or should that be how little?
How do carers think society sees them?
What is the reality of caring in the UK in 2011?
What are the biggest surprises that you and I encounter when we become carers?
What can really make a difference to carers lives? Is it money? Or something else?

Carers Bromley will keep you posted about events organised during Carers week.

Free Training & Information for Carers

The following courses/workshops for carers are now available at Carers Bromley:

Carers rights and information on local initiatives, including hospital discharge and what PACE and re-ablement teams offer
How to best support someone with Dementia, whilst also looking after yourself
Five ways of wellbeing: this will be following the most up-to-date evidence which suggests that building these five actions into day-to-day life is important for everyone’s good health

Contact Carers Bromley on freephone helpline 0800 015 7700.

Movers & Groovers project develops social networking communication to extend its reach

CLB launched the Movers & Groovers Project this spring in response to the Big Society’s vision of involving everyone working together in their local communities. In an approach new to the Borough, the project draws on the power of social networking sites to provide informal and flexible communication. Using Facebook, text messaging services and brand new website, Movers and Groovers sets out to engage with the hardest to reach in the community, encouraging individuals to have their say on local issues.

Jo Guest, CLB’s Community Cohesion Officer explains how it works. “The idea is to give the Movers and Groovers the opportunity to be involved as much or as little as they want. The way our Mottingham group has evolved gives you an example of the flexibility of this approach. One group of residents have decided to hold regular but very informal meetings, to discuss issues that matter to them and set about planning about how to resolve these issues for the benefit of everyone. Another group have signalled their involvement by signing up to a text messaging service to receive news of local events. Others have opted to join the Mottingham Movers & Groovers Facebook page and keep informed that way.”

Movers & Groovers also supports and works with voluntary and community organisations working in the area, like the Mottingham Community Association. Jo is keen to expand this area of her work. She explains, “I would very much like to involve more organisations working in the Mottingham community, so that we can increase the impact of this growing network. If your organisation is delivering services in Mottingham, please get in touch. And for those of you working outside this area, we are developing a Movers & Groovers in Penge later this year.”

For a full outline of the work and reach of the project, please go to our new website www.moversandgroovers.org. Alternatively, contact Jo Guest by email jog@communitylinksbromley.org.uk or phone 020 8315 1917.

Help shape the future of policing in London

The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has launched a review into the different ways in which the public can contact police and access their services. These range from telephone, online and face-to-face methods, including via police stations and appointments.

As part of the review, the Met has launched an online survey to find out which of the many channels the public use to contact it and the survey poses the question would members of the public choose a different way of accessing police services in future.
The online survey at www.met.police.uk also asks the public for their opinions on how it should consider the overall future of front counters; a proposed minimum ‘core service commitment’, which includes an easily accessible front counter in every London borough open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The survey is not about decisions regarding individual front counters.

Consultation will also take place regarding the proposed criteria for enhanced front counter service provision, which will ensure that local services are tailored to meet demand.

The online survey will be supported by a period of consultation with local partners and stakeholders, such as councils, Independent Advisory Groups (IAGs) and Neighbourhood Watch schemes. The views of partners and the public are key to any decisions made as to how services should be delivered in the future.

The survey runs until 27th May 2011 and its findings will be used to develop a strategy to maintain and enhance public access to policing services within a core minimum standard. No decisions have yet been made and any changes will only take place with the approval of the most senior officers and staff who form the MPS Management Board and the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA), an independent governing body that holds the MPS to account.

To have your say and influence the future of local policing in your area please complete the survey at: www.met.police.uk by 27th May 2011. Your views are important and will help improve services to better meet your needs. If you have any further questions or comments around the survey please contact us on Bromley.FOIA@met.police.uk

Bromley Healthcare Community Forum

You will all be aware that Bromley Healthcare has now gone ‘live’ as an independent social enterprise delivering the community health services formally run by the PCT. Its stated commitment is to put the patient at the heart of what it does. One way Bromley Health care wants to do this is through the Community Forum they asked Community Links Bromley to establish in the New Year.

The forum has been active in electing new community governors - see separate article. However, as always, the more people involved the better, so why not join the forum yourself. Membership is open to anyone who is a patient of Bromley Healthcare, cares for someone who uses the services or is a volunteer or staff member of a voluntary organisation directly supporting them. Join today and play a part in shaping local services.

Contact Stephen Blann 020 8315 1907 at Community Links Bromley or download a membership form. See you at the next meeting on 2nd June, Bromley Town Church.

Bromley Healthcare Community Governors elected

Community Links Bromley recently created a community forum on behalf of Bromley Healthcare. Part of the support was to run elections for community governors from amongst the forum, ready for when Bromley Healthcare went live in April 2011. Candidates length of office as governor before facing re-election was determined by the votes received. The governor receiving most votes serves for three years, the next most successful governor for two and the remaining two governors serve for one year before having to face re-election.

There was an online ballot, with postal vote for those without computer access, with a 72% turnout. Votes for candidates who are patients or carers were to be counted first, but, as it turned out, all candidates met this criteria so all votes were counted together. The election was carried out using a preferential voting system using transferable votes. Elected as Governors were:

1st - Mary Porter serving 3 years before facing re-election
2nd - Julie Smith serving 2 years
3rd - Brebner Anderson serving 1 year
4th - Richard Comaish serving 1 year

Their main role will be to join the board of Governors, which includes staff, governors and nominated governors from GPs and the council; and to represent the views of the Community Forum. They will be attending each Community Forum meeting to hear views and report back.

The next forum meeting is in the afternoon of Thursday 2 June , times to be confirmed, at Bromley Town Church. Why not join the forum? Contact Stephen Blann 020 8315 1907 at Community Links Bromley or download a membership form. See you on 2nd June.

Consultation on closure of Children and Families centres

Part of the proposals to reduce the council’s budget this year and next year included a radical reduction in the number of Children’s centres in the borough. This year planned new centres will not open but next year several existing centres are planned to close. There is currently a consultation on this issue. The proposals are:

Community Vision, based in Penge and the Blenheim centre in Orpington will remain open with “enhanced services” and will act as a hub for either side of the borough. “These centres have been chosen because they are in the areas of greatest need and because they provide full day care for children thus allowing families to return to work”
There will be one other centre - Hawes Down, for children with disabilities and their families, which is currently under construction.
The council is looking for “partners” to take on remaining centres - but there will council funding for them to do so. There is an implication in the wording that the centres may not remain entirely as children’s centres – although the council recognise they will need to refund the government if they do not provide services for children any more.

Here is a list of the centres affected and their services

James Dixon - Drop in or play sessions. Crèche. Health/counselling/advice, information
Burnt Ash, Plaistow - Drop in or play sessions. Crèche. Health/counselling/advice, information. Little Ashes pre-school is on the same site.
Elmers End - Drop in or play sessions. Crèche. Health/counselling/advice
Biggin Hill - Drop in or play sessions. Crèche. Health/counselling/advice, information. A pre-school provider is also based at the centre
Churchfields, Beckenham - Drop in or play sessions. Crèche. Health/counselling/advice and a variety of information. The school has a maintained nursery.
Poverest Adult Education Centre, Cray Valley West - crèche
Manor Oak, Cray Valley East - Crèche. Maintained nursery in school.
Royston, Penge - Crèche. Pre-school and maintained nursery on school site.
Princes Plain, Bromley Common - Full day care. Crèche. Maintained nursery in school.
Widmore Adult Education Centre, Bromley Town -
Cotmandene, Cray Valley West - Crèche to link with ‘The Centre’ located opposite.
Castlecombe - Has a maintained nursery on site.
Mottingham - Has pre-school on site.
There is not a specific question about the principal of closing the remaining centres; the specific consultation questions are:

Do you agree that we should continue to fund Children and Family Centres in the areas of greatest deprivation?
Do you agree that these centres could act as service hubs for an area of the borough?
Do you agree that we should provide a service for disabled children and their families through a children and family centre?
Which centres should we continue to fund?
Which services delivered, through Children and Family Centres, should we continue to provide?
Where we cease to fund centres fully, it may be feasible for building to continue to be used by services. How could this be organised and funded?

Send any comments to Val Haskey, CYP Secretariat (Room E47), Children and Young People Department or e‑mail to c&fconsultation@bromley.gov.uk by 17 June 2011.

LBB Decision on personalisation and charging policy

The portfolio holder for Adult & Community Services, Cllr Graham Arthur, considered a report on the 18th March about the consultation on the proposed new personal budget and contributions policy for adult and community services.
There were eight proposals in the consultation and following the consultation there were a number of changes suggested to Cllr Arthur, demonstrating, he said, the value of consultation for organisations, individuals and the council. Download a briefing here and visit the LBB website for report to the portfolio holder and on the consultation’s results