WELL NORTH PROGRAMME

CREATING HEALTHIER PLACES

How do you actually create healthier communities in 10 different places through cross-sector partnerships? Case study includes highlights from: Well Whitehaven, Well Bradford, Well Skelmersdale, Well Sefton, Well Doncaster, Well Oldham, Well Halton, Well Sheffield, Well Rotherham, Well Newcastle Gateshead.

The challenge

To share the learning from the Bromley by Bow Centre in East London across 10 place-based innovation projects across the North of England. This was a £9m Public Health England programme designed to tackle health inequalities through entrepreneurial and asset-based approaches.

  • “EVERYTHING COMES DOWN TO RELATIONSHIPS AND PEOPLE. THERE ARE FOUR THINGS THAT MATTER TO EVERYONE: HAVING A REASON TO GET UP IN THE MORNING, SOMETHING MEANINGFUL TO DO, ENOUGH MONEY TO LIVE ON AND SHARING AFFECTION AND FRIENDSHIP. WELL NORTH HAD THE VISION TO REALISE THIS IS WHAT WILL HELP PEOPLE TO LIVE LONGER IN GOOD HEALTH – AND TO PUT IT INTO PRACTICE ACROSS TEN COMMUNITIES.”

    Duncan Selbie, Chief Executive, Public Health England

  • “Well Skelmersdale is about ensuring everyone can find a way to reach their full potential. Skelmersdale is a unique community, it is awash with so much talent. I’m passionate about spreading the effects of this so that everyone can see that it’s possible to reach your own goals.”

    Kathryn Kavanagh, Lead manager, Health Inequalities, NHS West Lancashire Clinical Commissioning Group.

  • “I believe that Well Skem is an undercurrent flowing through everything I do here. The values mean that I can always check out if what I am involved with is supported by the right attitudes.”

    Cerys Smye-Rumsby, Community Development Worker at West Lancashire CVS (Council for Voluntary Services).

  • “I believe that Well Skelmersdale will, at last, help bring about ‘the change for the better’ Skelmersdale is waiting for. Thinking outside the box and taking risks to make this happen gives me a buzz and is definitely what I want to be involved in.”

    Ann Petty, local Missional Leader, Oaks Church, Tanhouse, Skelmersdale.

  • “Well Skelmersdale is about ensuring everyone can find a way to reach their full potential. Skelmersdale is a unique community, it is awash with so much talent. I’m passionate about spreading the effects of this so that everyone can see that it’s possible to reach your own goals.”

    Kathryn Kavanagh, Lead manager – Health Inequalities, NHS West Lancashire Clinical Commissioning Group.

  • “Well Skelmersdale is all about change, a change driven by the community for the community. Two quotes by George Bernard Shaw really capture the essence of this for me: “Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” AND “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”

    Mike Maguire, Chief Officer of NHS West Lancashire Clinical Commissioning Group.

  • “It’s been a lovely opportunity to connect with like-minded people, to share ideas, joined up thinking and shared commonality.”

    Participant at a Community Conversation in Inner West Newcastle.

The Story

In Spring 2014, Professor Aidan Halligan shared his vision to start a new movement to improve the health of the poorest people fastest, across a number of communities, and created a plan to deliver ‘Well North’.

In 2014 Public Health England awarded the Well North project £9 million to cover the first three years, and between 2015-2019, the Well North programme has been delivered in 10 towns and cities across the North of England through our 10 ‘Pathfinders’, creating healthier communities, where local people can live, work and thrive.

It is now our mission to build on this work through the legacy of Well North Enterprises and the 360° Society movement, delivering practical placemaking projects to support the transition to a fairer and more equal society across the UK.

Key services/products delivered and outputs

Download the full Well North Legacy report (PDF) or click on the images below to view the highlights from each Well North Pathfinder. The images were created by the Well North Artist, Matt Worden.

Copy of Well Skelmersdale.jpg
Well Bradford.jpg
Well Doncaster.jpg
Well Halton 2.jpg
Well Oldham.jpg
Well NG.jpg
Well Rotherham.jpg
Well Sefton.jpg
Well Sheffield.jpg
Well Skelmersdale.jpg
Well Whitehaven.jpg

Client/funder

Public Health England and numerous funders and partners.

Partners

NHS Trusts and CCGs, housing associations, schools, sports clubs, theatre companies and businesses - from Widnes Vikings to Gullivers Kingdom.

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SOUTH YORKSHIRE INNOVATION PLATFORM – CONNECTING FUTURE TALENT TO GOOD WORK