Community Solutions is an exciting, respected and effective partnership programme which supports community and voluntary organisations to improve people’s wellbeing, promote equality and provide support to vulnerable people across North Lanarkshire by:

• funding 6 locality host organisations to facilitate joint working at local level, including sharing information and good practice; identifying priority needs; managing allocation of small grants through a Locality Activity Fund and promoting other funds managed through the Community Solutions Programme
• funding over 200 local and/or NL-wide thematic projects on a wide range of issues including advocacy and self-directed support; carers support; children and young people; mental health and wellbeing
• supporting wider community engagement in the Community Solutions programme and health and social care integration
• promoting the Community Solutions values and approach to inform development of other health and social care services and, where appropriate, other services and initiatives that support wellbeing.

The Community Solutions programme was established in 2012 and now has recurrent annual funding of around £1.1 million from Health and Social Care North Lanarkshire (HSC-NL), plus additional funding from HSC-NL and other sources – with a current annual total of over £3 million.

With additional funding over the coming two years coming from:

• Health and Social Care North Lanarkshire Prevention and Early Intervention additional funding
• NHS Charities Together – Connecting Communities for Health: Investing in Lanarkshire’s Social Prescribing Network
• Macmillan Cancer Support – Improving the Cancer Journey (ICJ)

The Community Solutions programme is piloting a new Improving Lives Initiative (ILI). In addition to increasing the resources to support the Locality Hosts and increasing the funding to distribute through the Locality Activity Fund; the ILI will also establish a team of Community Connectors to provide support to people who would benefit from informal community-based support and help accessing formal statutory support should they need it. The Community Connectors will signpost people to community supports provided by Community and Voluntary Sector (CVS) Organisations and where appropriate link to statutory services such as Home Assessment Teams and Integrated Rehabilitation Teams.

The Community Connectors will be employed by North Lanarkshire Disability Forum (NLDF), which was established in 1991 by and for disabled people and their carers, and continue to be a user led organisation. NLDF provide up to date information on disability issues throughout North Lanarkshire. The ethos of NLDF is keeping people independent and in their home for as long as possible by empowering people with information, access to appropriate supports and ensuring they know their rights.

NLDF are keen collaborators within Health and Social Care supporting individuals and their carers to contribute to consultations that matter to them such as National Care Service, devolved benefit consultations through Social Security Scotland, Strategy guidance on Self-Directed Support (SDS), and more local issues around supports for people with Additional Support Needs (ASN) such as accessing Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).

NLDF currently has four projects providing practical supports around finances, social needs and carer breather sessions for people in North Lanarkshire to link into providing information, advice and wellbeing tools.

NLDF are Volunteer Friendly accredited and Living wage employers.

For more information on NLDF, please contact Lorraine on 01698 275710 or email Lorraine@nldforum.org.uk or visit our website at nldforum.org.uk

We have successfully secured funding through The National Lottery Community Fund for a Family Support Worker to work on our Practical Assistance to improve Health and wellbeing (PATH) project and will be hosted and managed by North Lanarkshire Disability Forum (NLDF).

The project compliments and adds to existing local provisions by focussing one to one support for people who are worried about the cost of living crisis. We want to ensure they are better supported within their community and can access and manage support that maximises their assets and helps meet personal outcomes. We are looking for a strong communicator to strengthen our existing team in helping people through this difficult time by further developing our support system to those we already assist. These supports may be online groups, face to face in our office or at the persons home so you must be comfortable meeting disabled people and their carers from diverse backgrounds. The cost of living crisis is affecting everyone so often this will involve having conversations around practical and emotional issues about finances, you should be able to reassure and create a place to discuss the current climate and the issues for people including mental health, housing, employment, benefits and relationships. This role is to provide an opportunity for people to discuss and access practical support around cost of living issues in an informal way.

Voluntary Action North Lanarkshire and Community Solutions Programme which is the community capacity building and carer support arm of Health and Social Care North Lanarkshire have secured funding through the Scottish Government Support in the Right Direction fund to develop a project supporting people to access social and community care as well as local community supports and services in North Lanarkshire. The project is hosted and managed by North Lanarkshire Disability Forum (NLDF).

The project compliments and adds to existing local social work provision by focussing one to one support for people who are not eligible for a social care budget to ensure they are better supported within the community and are able to access and manage support that maximises their assets and helps meet personal outcomes. This post will run until March 2024 with a possible extension (funding dependent) extending the reach of the project across all localities within North Lanarkshire.

We are looking for a strong communicator to strengthen our existing team in helping people through this difficult time by further developing our online groups and connecting people to other local resources, this involves having conversations aroundpractical and emotional issues about community supports, a place to discuss the current climate and the issues for people with or without an SDS budget around a particular issue or topic, e.g. mental health, housing, employment, gardening, art.

This role is to provide an opportunity for people to discuss issues in an informal way. The ideal person will also have experience of marketing and promoting projects to engage and encourage involvement of the target group.This post is subject to membership of the PVG scheme.

We are seeking an experienced administrator, whose role will be essential to the smooth running of the 3 projects under the NLDF umbrella. We are a small but busy team of 4, so we need a versatile worker who can work autonomously and as part of our team. You will be aware of disability issues in North Lanarkshire and the adversities people face. It is important to have a person-centred approach and a belief in disabled people’s rights.

Responsibilities:

• General office duties such answering calls, meeting and greeting people who visit our office, data input.
• To carry out the collation and organisation of the projects and the facilitation and booking of sessional work both internally and externally.
• To keep NLDF Membership and Community resource databases up to date and the associated administration tasks, sending out welcome letters and badges to new members
• Promotion of our organisation and projects on social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook, ensuring it is topical and up to date. Responding to online enquiries.
• To work as part of the team you will be supporting other staff members to enable them to spend more time on core project work. This will help our organisation grow and develop its services, increasing awareness and support for those living with a disability in North Lanarkshire.
• Liaising with members to ensure they are supported regarding the application process and promoting the organisation when the opportunity arising.

General:

Adhere to the organisation’s policies and procedures and values Work within agreed budgets and timescales. Carry out other duties as may be reasonably assigned from time to time. This job description is non-contractual and subject to change as the needs of the organisation change.

We are seeking an experienced administrator, whose role will be essential to the smooth running of the 3 projects under the NLDF umbrella. You will be a versatile worker who can work autonomously and as part of our team. You will be aware of disability issues in North Lanarkshire and the adversities people face. It is important to have a person-centred approach and a belief in disabled people’s rights.

Responsibilities:

• To carry out the collation and organisation of the projects and the facilitation and booking of sessional work both internally and externally.
• To keep NLDF Membership and Community resource databases up to date and the associated administration tasks, sending out welcome letters and badges to new members, promotion on social media sites and ensuring it is topical and up to date.
• To work as part of the team you will be supporting other staff members to enable them to spend more time on core project work. This will help our organisation grow and develop its services, increasing awareness and support for those living with a disability in North Lanarkshire.
• Liaising with members to ensure they are supported regarding the application process and promoting the organisation when the opportunity arising.

General:

Adhere to the organisation’s policies and procedures and values Work within agreed budgets and timescales. Carry out other duties as may be reasonably assigned from time to time. This job description is non-contractual and subject to change as the needs of the organisation change.

Qualifications:

Essential

• Driving License and own vehicle

Desirable

• Qualification in health / social care or ability to demonstrate relevant experience.

Knowledge/Experience:

Essential

• Organisational skills
• Communication, social media skills and experience
• Plan and manage workload
• Working with a diverse range of partners
• MS365 packages Word, Excel, Outlook, Powerpoint. Use of social media platforms.
• Demonstration of ability to work collaboratively across health and social care and with service users and carers.
• Ability to work as part of a team, share knowledge and benefit from experience of others
• Broad knowledge and understanding of the Third Sector
• Proactive approach to problem solving

Desirable

• Event management and facilitation

NLDF (North Lanarkshire Disability Forum) are a Disabled People’s Organisation (DPO) funded by NLC to provide information and advice on disabilities and services available within North Lanarkshire and to represent the voice of disabled people and their carers.

Our projects focus on

• Independent Living
• Participation
• Control
• Choice of empowerment

Core Services include

• Financial information on disability related benefits.
• Knowing your rights, promotion of local consultations and supporting people to have their say
• Self-Directed Support (Community focussed)
• Identifying gaps in service and looking for ways to support individuals and/or carers in innovative ways

Voluntary Action North Lanarkshire and Community Solutions Programme which is the community capacity building and carer support arm of Health and Social Care North Lanarkshire have secured funding through the Scottish Government Support in the Right Direction fund to develop a project supporting people to access social and community care as well as local community supports and services in North Lanarkshire. The project is hosted and managed by North Lanarkshire Disability Forum (NLDF).

The project compliments and adds to existing local social work provision by focussing one to one support for people who are not eligible for a social care budget to ensure they are better supported within the community and are able to access and manage support that maximises their assets and helps meet personal outcomes.

This post will run until March 2023 with a possible extension (funding dependent) extending the reach of the project across all localities within North Lanarkshire.

We are looking for a strong communicator to strengthen our existing team in helping people through this difficult time by further developing our online groups and connecting people to other local resources, this involves having conversations around practical and emotional issues about community supports, a place to discuss the current climate and the issues for people with or without an SDS budget around a particular issue or topic, e.g. mental health, housing, employment, gardening, art. This role is to provide an opportunity for people to discuss issues in an informal way. The ideal person will also have experience of marketing and promoting projects to engage and encourage involvement of the target group. This post is subject to membership of the PVG scheme.

Voluntary Action North Lanarkshire and Community Solutions Programme which is the community capacity building and carer support arm of Health and Social Care North Lanarkshire have secured funding through the Scottish Government Support in the Right Direction fund to develop a project supporting people to access social and community care as well as local community supports and services in North Lanarkshire. The project is hosted and managed by North Lanarkshire Disability Forum (NLDF).

The project compliments and adds to existing local social work provision by focussing one to one support for people who are not eligible for a social care budget to ensure they are better supported within the community and are able to access and manage support that maximises their assets and helps meet personal outcomes. This post will run until March 2023 with a possible extension (funding dependant) extending the reach of the project across all localities within North Lanarkshire. We are looking for a strong communicator to strengthen our existing team in helping people through this difficult time by further developing our online groups and connecting people to other local resources, this involves having conversations around practical and emotional issues about community supports, a place to discuss the current climate and the issues for people with or without an SDS budget around a particular issue or topic, e.g. mental health, housing, employment, gardening, art. This role is to provide an opportunity for people to discuss issues in an informal way. The ideal person will also have experience of marketing and promoting projects to engage and encourage involvement of the target group. This post is subject to membership of the PVG scheme.